CO129-571-10 Sino-Japanese War- Medical Relief Commission of the National Red Cross Society of China 12-9-1938 - 7-10-1938 — Page 15

CO129 Colonial Office Hong Kong Records 理藩院香港檔案 All

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conditiors above described would largely prevent these

officers from carrying out their work efficiently.

4.

In the rear, the Army Medical Administration maintains

base hospitals (

), a number of surgical hospitals

(

), and hospitals for special cases (orthopedic, etc.).

These hospitals are relatively better staffed than the field

hospitals, but the fact that there are altogether some 275

military hospitals with a total capacity of approximately

220,000 beds, including those at the front and the rear, and

realizing that not more than one-third of China's six thousand

modern qualified physicians are on war service, it will be

realized that only a few of these hospitals are properly

staffed with doctors. Another reasons why there are so few

modern physicians in the army is the extremely low rate of pay.

Besides the base hospitals, there are convalescent

hostels organized by the Central Wounded Soldiers Administration

Recovered soldiers are sent to these hostels and from them to

Regimental Depots, where they are formed into "Honour Regiments"

and re-trained prior to their return to the front. Too often,

the evacuation of convalscents from the base hospitals is hindered by the inefficiency of the army paymaster's office, the soldiers refusing to leave until arrears of pay and wound

gratuities have been received. Occasionally the soldiers are

reluctant to exchange the relative ease of the hospital for the

lesser conforts of the convalescent hostel. These defects arise

partly on account of the loose discipline exercised over wounded soldiers and has the unfortunate effect of lengthening the duration of hospitalization and restricting the number of beds

available for fresh casualties.

The situation with regard to nursing is as bad, if not

worse, as that in the case of doctors. The lack of qualified and trained nursing personnel is aggravated by the necessity of

appointing

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