426 - The Surgical Legacy of World War II - Part 3: Blood and Valor

TheSurgicalLegacyofWorldWar II Part 3: Blood and Valor Dolores Goyette , cst, dc L E A R N I N G O B J E C T I V E S s Learn about the Invasion of Normandy, which began D-Day in June 1944 s Examine howmany medical personnel were pulled from the healthcare system to serve the soldiers on the frontlines s Read about the key personnel who made a different during and after the world wars s Identify the role surgical personnel played in establishing a care system during the war s Recall the conditions the surgical field teams had to deal with to administer care to the wounded A uthor’s note: As our nation remembers the 75th anniversary of D-Day and the final battles of World War II, we should acknowledge the contributions of outstanding medical personnel, whose incredible vision, intensive planning, and heroic efforts gave the wounded an extraordinary chance of survival. Among them are distinguished military surgeons, whose experiences inspired them to invent and implement methods and instruments that bear their names, because they are used every day in modern ORs. Yet, there are countless names not mentioned here—men and women of all races, ranks, and occupations, whose contributions are no less important to the effort to mitigate human suffering, and who are profoundly worthy of being remembered. Work- ing CSTs should care about this increasingly distant history because the surgical technology profession can trace its inception to this period in American history, as the military planned for and entered the first truly global conflict. “Blood and Valor” is third in a series of articles called The Surgical Legacy of WWII, written to provide an overview of the key surgical developments of World War II. “Part 1: Pearl Harbor, Preparation and Portability,” published in the December 2016 issue of The Surgical Technologist, dis- cussed the tactical and medical planning prior to America’s formal entry into the war following the attack on Pearl Harbor, as well as the logistical reality of delivering surgical care on the islands of the Pacific and the disparate terrain encountered around the Empire of Japan. “Part 2: The Age of Antibiotics,” published in the June 2017 issue, focused on the devel- opment of penicillin and the advent of perioperative antibiotic therapy. The Invasion of Normandy, which began on D-Day, has been memori- alized in popular books, films, and television series, holding the attention of historians for 75 years. The magnitude of planning and collaboration required is juxtaposed against the haunting personal accounts that have made their way home to be told to future generations. The Invasion of Normandy was, and remains, the largest amphibious assault ever con- ducted. The attack on the German defenses along the northern coast of France, with five separate beaches assaulted simultaneously represented the Allied effort to free Europe from Hitler’s terror. More than 160,000 Allied troops crossed the beaches into France in 12 hours that first day, and another 13,000 American paratroopers dropped behind enemy lines via parachute and gliders. The improbable success that the Allied forces were able to achieve in JUNE 2019 | The Surgical Technologist | 253