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companies.
Thus these two companies merely form stations
where wounded brought back from the line are given a chance
of dressing and then carried further to the rear, without the
technical aid which they should receive at this time. Some
attempt,, however, is made to sort the wounded, but the
organisation is not well understood especially by the officers
and men of the fighting units, with the result that light
(walking) wounded are often able to secure places in vehicular
transport before the severely wounded are brought up, to the
latter's disadvantage. The lack of treatment of such
conditions as shock, hemorrhage, internal wounds, and often
fractures, results in the failure of many of these casualties
to survive the journey from the line to the field hospital.
Added to these difficulties is the inadequacy of vehicular
transport, the poorness of the communications, and the mobile
and open nature of the warfare now being conducted. It must
be noted that in the rear of the combat zone, all roads are
destroyed to hinder the movement of the enemy's mechanized
columns. Light wounded have to walk, while the severely
wounded must be brought by stretcher to the rear of the line of
communication upon to vehicular traffic. On certain fronts,
this distance is usually long, and the stretchers are borne from village to village by the local inhabitants.
3. Along the lines of communication ( ) there are receiving stations (
) taking care of lightly wounded and
all wounded in transit, and field hospitals ( ) where the severely wounded who survive the journey have their first
opportunity of treatment. The receiving stations and field hospitals are organized by the Army Medical Administration and assigned for service along the lines of communication under the direction of the medical section of the Quartermaster-General's Office (
). This medical section takes charge not only
of