AWM41 969 - [Nurses Narratives] Sister G Douglas - Part 2

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vigorous men, the finest flower of Golden Australia’s 
male population, whose wounds & suffering were the
baptism of a new nation, were operated on, the
essentials done & were passed onto the ward then to
Luna Park.
That day ended at 4 A.M. as far as the theatre staff was concerned
and May 2nd began at 8 A.M. It was worse than the previous
day & work was carried on by the staff with a dogged
persistence despite the camp help so willingly given
& received.
Reinforcements 
During that evening a reinforcements of Sisters from
Australia came in & were sent on duty to Luna Park
where hitherto since the rush, had been 700 patients
five nurses & two orderlies night & day in practically
a barn with no sanitary conveniences or water to speak
of. Small wonder relief could not be given the theatre
staff while they could stand & work.
Men from the Light Horse Field Ambulance came in &
helped with carrying patients to & fro for there were no
ordinary conveniences, no rubber-wheeled trollies or
tables. There were flights of shallow marble stairs
& galleries & pillars to pass, between theatre & wards. A
couple of the sisters & three surgeons broke under the strain
with very severe colds or septic fingers & a short hour or
two was snatched by the others to go outside for a time
Within the next four days, wards for medical officers &
sisters respectively were opened The Sisters in-charge had
to carry meals for their patients from the mess-rooms
up two flights of stairs.
The strain of the theatre to the staff of surgeons & sisters
working without relief day & night for a time was
very great but at least anaesthesia was merciful in
sparing them the pain & consciousness of the patients
as the ward sisters & orderlies had to bear.
 

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There the womanly sympathies of the sisters was stretched
to breaking point There too they gathered information erroneous or
correct, of other battalions. And there was no cheer.
Few indeed during that ghastly initiation of War but
were torn with anxiety But there were a few who had
no personal interest in any of the Australian Imperial
Force.
Orderlies.  The orderlies worked splendidly for, when, as was
frequently the case, trains came in at midnight or later
A fall-in would sound for orderlies on duty all day
to assist in unloading the train of three hundred
or so patients.
About this time the civilized world was horrified to
learn of the Sinking of the Luisitania
[[Seco]]ndary haemorrhages were common, unfortunately
unavoidably as all the cases were septic upon reaching
the Hospital after so many days travelling in discomfort
& heat with lack of proper attention.
So alert did all the staff become that it was no
uncommon thing to see a Sister applying pressure
upon a part she had detected bleeding freely, the
while the orderlies carried the patient down the stairs
along the gallery & into the theatre where all were
standing ready for anything
The hospital remained extremely busy till about the
3^rd week in May & the weather continued grew oppressively

warm The theatre thermometer registered 98^o Fahrenheit
as work began & 104^o Fahrenheit at 3 p.m.
Patients were brought in from Surrounding camps
suffering from heat stroke.
The ward sisters had an extremely trying time
in their administrative work particularly at
meal times For instance four distinct wards were
in one large room originally intended for a
dining-hall All meals were served to this
 

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room en masse & all Sisters & orderlies partook of the
scramble to serve their own section first. It was
inevitable that difficulties arose too, with laundry,
instruments, dishes, dressings. Nothing was labelled
Any extra cooking for very sick patients had to be
encompassed on spirit lamps the property of the Sisters.
One sister was sent to open a surgical section & was
instructed to requisition for everything necessary
She did so & received one packet of pins. This ward
was to receive patients for one of Melbourne's foremost
surgeons
Transport to N. Zealand.
On June 6th six sisters were chosen to go on transports to
New Zealand, they had an excellent reception there &
came back refreshed in September.
A Convalescent Hospital was established at Ras-el-Tin
Alexandria about this time where Australian Soldiers
were received & Australian Medical Officers & Sisters Staffed
Many more Australians Sisters from Australia reinforced
the 1^st Australian General Hospital & the original members
were in turn granted a weeks leave in Alexandria, at
the Red Cross Home established at Zizinia Bacos or
at Aboukir.
Death of a sister  On 26th June everyone was distressed at
the death of a Sister from septic pneumonia starting
from a septic finger
In July some sisters went down to Suez on duty
About the end of July another auxiliary hospital was
opened at the Sporting Club Heliopolis
Wounded men continued to come in steadily, & the
weather was extremely trying owing to the moisture
due to the rising waters of the Nile
Lone Pine  In the first week in August wounded came in
in large numbers from the Battle of Lone Pine
 

[*to breaking*]
 

[[1?]]
This apparently had a bad effect on the Arab population

rioting took place & Cairo was placed out of bounds.

Many of the patients received during August were

suffering from typhoid fever & dysentery Owing to

the regulation inoculation against the former the

nursing was rendered considerably less arduous

& the convalescence was much quicker.
In September 1915 more of the original staff volunteered

for duty in England but worked among English Military

Hospitals. Indeed between all the various post on

transport to Dardenelles England & Australia, & the

continual additions to accommodation for convalescent

patients very few sisters seemed to be permanent at all.

Reinforcements arrived at intervals & were welcomed

but none so thankfully as those arriving a few

days after the Gallipoli rush.
A certain amount of sight seeing was enjoyed as

the staff instead of having 3 hours daily off duty

had every alternate afternoon & evening.

The flood waters of the Nile were witnessed in September.

During October the hospital was kept busy Several of

the medical officers & the Sisters developed typhoid fever

& eventually went back to Australia.

In November ten New Zealand Sisters died from the

effects of a transport being sunk by Submarine while

others were sick in Alexandria

Rumors of Evacuation.

During this month persistent rumors were heard of the

evacuation of Gallipoli & the Australians were once

again in Cairo about Christmas 1915.

Early January 1916 a Club was opened for the use

of all Army Sisters & was immensely appreciated

The weather was now much cooler & the hospital work

was steady from the camps

 

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Another sister an original member from Queensland

died from pneumonia on 21st January. Sisters from

No 3 Australian General Hospital stationed on Lemnos

arrived & were attached for a short time

During February work was again heavy but supplies

were more readily received & the whole place running

more easily while leave was granted for a few days to

visit Luxor.

Closing of Hospital

On 14th March orders were received to admit no more 

patients & packing of equipment commenced for a

destination unknown.

On 29th March 1916 the Staff of the 1st Australian General

Hospital started once more embarking on the Transport

Salta & arrived steamed for Marseilles fortunately having

avoided the many submarines in the Mediterranean Sea

These were seen & boats were provisioned in readiness Life-belts

were ordered to be worn continually.

Early on 5th April 1916 Marseilles was reached & la landing

of staff & baggage took place on 7th. The unit was split

up fifty going to Rouen others to Boulogne, Etaples,

Le Treport LeHavre & Dieppe. Everyone was very disappointed

The medical officers were not yet billetted

Rouen with its beautiful medieval city was reached after

two days travelling by train and the fifty Australian

sisters were sent to various English hospitals in the district.

Snow & rain were plentiful & added to the biting wind

proved very trying after fifteen months of Egyptian heat.

After a week's work with the English units the 1st Aust.

General Hospital was established again this time in tents

on the race-course. Water was not laid on neither was there

a path or a road made. There was no drainage

Tents were a new experience for most of the Sisters to work

in. Huts were in readiness for quarters for the nursing staff

who had to share a cubicle 10 feet by 6 feet with a friend.

The camp furniture brought from Australia in 1914

 

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was for the first time put into use. There were was a huts for

messing & a sitting-room detached from this for with

a French stove.

For the patients there were two huts for acute Surgical cases

attached to the theatre also a hut, the rest of the accommodation

of the thousand patients was in tents.

The theatre-hut had previously been on fire & was

scorched & blackened everywhere No paint was available

apparently & four sisters were sent to make it fit

for use The work was portioned off & every inch was of

wall was swept & scrubbed. The water was carted

daily to a few big wooden tubs in the compound

Such a supply speedily ran out & frequently the

water available procurable for the scrubbing was caught in

buckets from the leaky roof of the adjacent the surgical

hut.

On 1st May patients were received & operations began in the

strangely cleaned but satisfactory theatre next day.

Sterilizing was done as in the Palace Hotel Cairo

on blue-flame stoves Instruments were more plentiful

& a set of usual major operation instruments with

saws & bone instruments was always left boiling in

readiness for the next operation.

Three tables were generally engaged & wound were

much more serious as high explosive became

commonly used on the battle-field.

A tent theatre was equipped for clean cases.

In Early in June the news optimistic & pessimistic

of a Battle off the coast of Denmark came through

& a little later the news was confirmed of the

drowning of Lord Kitchener on his way to Russia

on board the Hampshire

Orders were issued to prepare for a big rush of

wounded in early July.

Huge quantities of stock were sterilized & stored &

the complete equipment of another theatre was

gathered together quietly in anticipation

 

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This foresight was appreciated when on 2nd July freshly

wounded poured in to No 1 A.G.H. as indeed into every

one of the many hospitals in the Rouen area. Thus the

second general theatre was ready immediately it

was required & operations were conducted with tremendous
dispatch all day & up till 3 a.m. in both hut

theatres As there was soon after this a theatre night

staff for the first time the burden was lightened for the

Sisters working there, but many of the Surgeons continued

working sixteen to eighteen hours per day. The base

hospital was practically a Casualty Clearing

Station at this time as these were not thoroughly
organised near the Line till next October.
All the orderlies worked splendidly & ungrudgingly

during these strenuous days & nights. Where convoys

came in three hundred patients at a time most

frequently at night or convoys left for "Blighty" the

men on duty during the day were called up still, to

assist load or unload the cars.

Pressure of work continued & the weather grew warmer

during July & August. Convoys of wounded were very

frequent both day & night & evacuation to England
correspondingly frequent The Red Cross supplies from

Australia were gratefully appreciated by the sick

& wounded as they lay on stretchers ready to be conveyed

to the "other side" Socks, gloves, mufflers, balaclavas

were used in huge numbers The "Blighty - smile"

became recognised.

During September 1916 the work fluctuated through as many
as forty eight cases were operated on daily in each theatre

& all were evacuated immediately cots were available to 

England.

In October the Australians realised winter had again

set in. All the water pipes laid on in the Spring

round the camp burst early one morning in October

& the carting of an inadequate amount of water

began again once more. Water for the operating theatre was

 

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stored in a big galvanised iron washing tub over

which a wooden lid fitted. Antiseptics were relied on as

sterile water could not be supplied for scrubbing of hands.
The class of wounds was very heavy, many being thigh injuries,

as well as other limb conditions.

The medical ward filled to overflowing with trench feet &

rheumatism & with trench fever

In November many Australians saw their first fall of snow

a beautiful sight.

During the bitter weather of December 1916 & January & February

following, the health of the Sisters was not good!

The sick-tent was kept full & many had to be evacuated to

No 8 British Hospital opposite the Forēt Vert thence to

England where a Sisters Hospital at Southwell Gardens

Sth Kensington had been established

Reinforcements to the nursing Staff continued to arrive

at all hours of the day or night to supplement these 

vacancies

During the early days of 1917 Zeppelin raids near were

experienced & were an example of the increasing

personal dangers the Sisters had to face. Those who had

gone to Staff the Casualty Clearing Stations nearer the

Line were more frequently in danger as bombing

from the air & shelling of roads near their station

were by no means uncommon.

In January 1917 water was very scarce as the intense

cold had caused all water mains to burst Streets in

Rouen were merely sheets of frozen ice of which

labourers chipped so that pedestrians & horses could

secure a foothold

All this time the Hospital was very busy

Besides the continual movements of the Staff, overdue

leave was arranged for everyone in turn for a

fortnight in England or to the South of France in

limited numbers & particularly for those with

 

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chest complaints. On the latter journey at each stopping

place the sisters were met by Red Cross representatives who

arranged details of travelling

At intervals during the Campaign in France the staff received gifts

from the Australian Comforts Fund which were appreciated

warmly

In March 1917 the Allies were further embarrassed by the

Russian Revolution & after the long severe winter the

spirits of possibly everyone in France were at a very low ebb.

In April nearly all the wards were full of surgical patients

This continued during May as the beautiful Spring came

to rejoice the people, who only saw a further opportunity

to open a more furious & death dealing offensive.

In June 1917 an American Staff took over two English

hospitals on the Race Course near No 1 Australian General

Hospital & in July Queen Mary honored the Australians

with a visit.

During the '16, '17 campaign a great deal of Casualty

Clearing work had to be done in the Base hospitals in

Rouen, Abbeville & elsewhere To lessen this; surgical teams

consisting of surgeon, anaesthetist, sister & orderly, were 
organised & travelled to the various  Clearing stations

augmenting the permanent staff during the various

engagements Often English, Canadians, Australians, Sth African

Americans formed one staff These teams were found to

work very well. At times six tables were occupied

day & night, being regularly relieved.

The wounded after visiting a dressing station for a

preliminary injection of Antitetanic serum & perhaps

morphia, received skilled attention within an hour or

so of being hit. Serious cases were retained at the

Casualty Clearing Station while others with the first

essentials of relief & comfort given were rapidly

evacuated to the Base in a much less dangerous

area.

All supplies were very liberal at these Stations both

hospital & Red Cross. The latter had depōts within