CARE OF SICK SOLDIERS

Southland Times, Issue 24885, 27 October 1942, Page 4

CARE OF SICK SOLDIERS

Fine Appointments Of Hospital Ship

The arrival of a hospital ship back from the zones of war with hundreds of sick and wounded soldiers is generally accepted as an event of great importance by the men, their relations and friends, but few can possibly realize the magnitude and the efficiency of the organization behind the care and safe transport of the men. To say that it is wonderful or marvellous would just be an attempt to describe the impression left in an interview with Captain A. C. Dickens, dental officer on the Oranje, the liospital ship made available to New Zealand and Australia by the Netherlands Indies Government. Nothing is left to chance in the embarkation of the men, *thcir treatment and caie on the voyage. Every detail has been rehearsed many times, even to a “dummy” rehearsal before each draft is taken on board at the port of embarkation. The Netherlands hospital ship Oranje carries a complement of 500—medical staff and ship’s company—and on it there is accommodation for 700 patients. Embarkation of a full ship of cases takes no more than three hours, but to ensure such expediency a preliminary rehearsal is carried out by the medical staff, nurses and orderlies. Members of the ship’s company are “labelled” just as the wounded man is “tagged” for reference purposes, and a full-scale embarkation is practised. By these rehearsals any possible flaw in the smooth working of the all-important embarking operations may be detected and corrected. The feeding of the men is one of the most important matters of the routine. Captain Dickens described the food on board the Oranje as a “revelation.” The men get the best and plenty of it, and there is no concealing their pleasure at the change from Army fare. “That is one part of the Army where we don’t have to deal with complaints,” he said. “The difference between some of the hard food and the ship food was aptly summed up by one man whose memories of desert life were revived with his first bite. ‘No sand,’ he gulped out. and that seemed to get the full endorsement of the others.” 150 LOAVES A DAY

The kitchen of the Oranje, like other departments so essential to a hospital ship, is as up-to-date as the kitchen of the best hotels and the cooking leaves no room for complaint. With a full ship no fewer than 150 loaves a day are required. They are baked in the ship’s kitchen. One item on the menu on the last voyage was greatly appreciated. It was the daily ration of good, fresh potatoes, a vegetable which had become almost a delicacy with most of the men. Captain Dickens has completed three voyages on the hospital ship. On none has there been anything which would come under the heading of “exciting.” The journeys had been more or less uneventful, he said. They were not monotonous, however. Apart from entertainment, of which there was variety and plenty, and the training of the men in various useful occupations, the boat and emergency drills kept time moving. The company and staff and all those men able to do so took part in regular drills, chief of which was the emergency air raid exercises. Teams of men and nurses were fully equipped, and supplies of bandages, drugs and first-aid kit were ready in case of possible disaster. Everybody had his oi her station; there was also an emergency hospital and operating theatre set up in readiness to replace possible destroyed parts of the ship. All of the patients were instructed what to do in case of emergency and most of them were put through lifeboat drill. ENTERTAINMENT

Entertainment both for the staff and the patients included cinema shows, concerts and the indoor and outdoor games usually indulged in on tourist ships. Some of the soldier talent was outstandingly good. The men all took an interest in the various occupations. These included knitting, leather work, the making of bags, purses and writing cases, plaiting of wrist straps, making of cushion covers and wool mats and embroidery work. Mentioning the dental branch of the ship, Captain Dickens commented on the completness of the equipment of the surgery on the Oranje. None better could be found anywhere, he said. The staff under his guidance examined the full complement of patients. Everyone received full dental treatment which was greatly appreciated. “It is our job to make the men as dentally fit as possible,” said Captain Dickens. “The surgery on the ship is complete in every way. It is air-con-ditioned and we are able to work through the tropics in comparative comfort.”

He added that everything was done for the welfare of the soldiers. It was his experience that the men enjoyed the sea voyage, and most of them had improved greatly at the end of the journey. Captain Dickens paid a warin tribute to the work of the V.A.’s on the ship. He said that their one thought was for the sick and wounded and they were willing to work all hours of the day or night to attend to the needs of the men.