RUSSIA'S VAST HOSPITALS.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 4, Issue 8, 29 January 1915, Page 4 (Supplement)

RUSSIA'S VAST HOSPITALS.

CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH THEY

ARE RUN.

MODERN SURGERY.

CZAR'S SISTER AS NURSE. Not the least interesting aspect of the war here (writes a "Times" correspondent from Rovno, Russia) is the manner and efficiency with which the Russians are taking care of their wounded. Probably no greater or more sudden strain was ever thrown upon the medical department of an army than that to which the Russians were exposed immediately after operations began against Austria; for not only were they called upon to look after their own stricken, but to as great an extent were they obliged to care for and treat the tens of thousands of wounded of tlie enemy who fell into their hands. Here is stationed one of the big bases for the wounded, and here for weeks might have been seen the great torrent of the stricken that is the price of victories gained. Eight huge barracks have been remodelled into hospitals, in addition to one large establishment under the Red Cross of Russia. The management of hospitals in time of war is always significant of the general efficiency of any army in its organisation and often one finds this branch of the service far less prepared to exercise its important functions than are the other portions of the army in the field. . We spent one day here looking over these establishments, and if the balance of the army is as well organised and performs its part as smoothly as the medical branch, Russia may be well proud of the reorganisation that ten years has seen in her military "department. The most significant aspect was the obviously democratic character of the whole management. But for our guide's statement to us from time to time it would have been impossible to tell when we were in the officers' wards and when in those of the private soldiers. All have the same equipment in beds, blankets, etc., and all are apparently treated exactly the same by the Sisters 0Mercy who care for them. Each one of these large establishments that we visited was as complete in equipment, though not, perhaps, as luxurious, as a city hospital. Operating rooms, pharmacies, rooms for the X-ray apparatus, and all the auxiliaries of modern medical science were at hand. That the work done by these hospitals is effective is best indicated by tb.e percentage of deaths resulting from wounds after the hospitals have been reached. In one hospital, I was informed by the doctor in charge, more than 2600 patients had been received, and of these there had been 42 deaths. In another of smaller size 300 patients had been accepted from the front and 18 deaths had been recorded. This evidence indicates pretty clearly that the modern rifle bullet, unless it kills outright, inflicts a wound from which the individual has more than a fair chance of recovering completely. SPEEDY RECOVERIES.

As one wanders about these limitless wards of the stricken, one is increasingly impressed by what the human being can stand, and still, with modern medical treatment, recover from. One man that we saw had been shot through the head quite cleanlv, and in two weeks was practically well. He obligingly walked about the room and smiled cheerfully to prove to us that he was a perfectly sound man once more. Others shot through the abdomen, stomach, bladder, lungs, and, in fact, almost all parts considered vital 20 years ago, were recovering as smoothly as though to be shot through were a part of the ordinary man's day of work. Here among the wounded were a number of Austrians and Germans who had been captured, and in each case they seemed cheerful and well satisfied with their treatment. One young German, who told me that he belonged to the 25th Regiment of the German line, seemed very enthusiastic over the Russians. He was shot through the bladder, but was picked up within a few minutes by the Russian first aid, received immediate treatment, and is now on the high road to recovery. He seemed secretly relieved to be safely out of the firing line, and his only anxiety was to communicate his situation to his friends at home. An Austrian soldier spoke in much the same strain.

An interesting case was that of one of the Austrian doctors who was captured in the fighting round Lemberg. He was at once taken to the hospital and installed there as a surgeon and placed on the same salary and footing as his Russian colleagues. In no case does one hear of any complaint as to treatment or even roughness on the field of battle. The faces of the men and their general condition and fare make it unnecessary to inquire as to their treatment while in the .hospital itself. Thousands of men have been received from the hospital trains in this town alone, but scarcely a month after the first flood of war's red vintage struck them the hospitals are becoming sparsely populated. Thousands have recovered entirely, and others have improved sufficiently to return to their homes, while more have been sent into the interior cf Russia and widely distributed for further treatment. With the experience of the first weeks of the war to stiffen them up, each of tlics.» organisations is now a perfectly-trained medical institution, and it is clear that when the next great, battle comes the wounded will receive even more adequate and successful treatment than did the first batch. TSAR'S SISTER AS A NURSE. The lied Cross hospital here is in charge of one of the Grand Duchesses, the sister of the Tsar, who every day ministers in person to the want's of the wounded, private ana officer alike. And here, as in the General Staff, all is absolutely democracy. The Grand Duchess dresses exactly like her more humble sisters, and performs the same task as do the others. In fact, not one soldier in 10 knows that he has met the sister of the Tsar in the kindly attendant who has waited on him each day. It is this aspect of simplicity and democracy among the high born thai it is hrrd for strangers to realise.

A feature which impresses one strongly in going through the hospitals is the comparative rarity of amputations. Few cripples are left to drag out their lives in misery. As a rule the modern bullet either kills or makes a wound from whirl; ultimate recovery is possible. With the exception of shell wounds and of cases in which treatment has come too late and blood poisoning has set in, there is small need for the loss of limbs.