Some say the Civil War furthered medical intelligence, others say it prevented people from further study of the medical field. Surgeries back then were brutal and sometimes, unnecessary. Amputations, for example, existed among the army because bullets were stuck in the bones of the soldiers. Medics could not save two-thirds of wounded soldiers because they knew nothing about bacteria and the importance of sanitation. They dressed wounds with the same bandages on different people because the medics thought it would save supplies of bandages (Wegner). They had no choice because supplies were running low, and they had no idea what damage they were causing. Amputations may be extreme in certain situations, but it saved many soldiers during the civil war and furthered the study of medicine.
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It opened up new and efficient ways to develop weaponry and jobs for women. The war improved many aspects of life, but the one entity that went through an immense change was the medical field.
Military surgeons used one sickening method to detach limbs from men and women, bone saws. They used bone saws to separate the limb(s) from the wounded soldiers’ bodies. Since the surgeons knew nothing about sanitation and germs, washing hands and bone saws were not considered until they were unusable (Battlefield Surgery). Due to the fact that bone saws were used many times before rinsing them, bacterial infection killed more soldiers than their actual wound. Although brutal, surgeons had no choice but to this. They had wounded soldiers crowding their workplace.
Brutal as it may seem, amputations were required before surgeons could fully understand the importance of sanitation. Due to the amount of diseases they had to combat, doctors had to rethink their concepts on they should approach wounded Americans.
Experience set surgeons on a path that would allow us to progress further into the medical field and save more
It opened up new and efficient ways to develop weaponry and jobs for women. The war improved many aspects of life, but the one entity that went through an immense change was the medical field.
Military surgeons used one sickening method to detach limbs from men and women, bone saws. They used bone saws to separate the limb(s) from the wounded soldiers’ bodies. Since the surgeons knew nothing about sanitation and germs, washing hands and bone saws were not considered until they were unusable (Battlefield Surgery). Due to the fact that bone saws were used many times before rinsing them, bacterial infection killed more soldiers than their actual wound. Although brutal, surgeons had no choice but to this. They had wounded soldiers crowding their workplace.
Brutal as it may seem, amputations were required before surgeons could fully understand the importance of sanitation. Due to the amount of diseases they had to combat, doctors had to rethink their concepts on they should approach wounded Americans.
Experience set surgeons on a path that would allow us to progress further into the medical field and save more