Second World War medicine

How did the Second World War change medicine?

The Second World War and its resulting injuries drove further developments in the world of medicine. There were particular advances in the areas of blood transfusions and skin grafts.

Who were the pioneering surgeons of the Second World War medicine?

Some famous surgeons in the Second World War were a British neurosurgeon called Wylie McKissock, an American heart surgeon named Dwight Harken, and Archibald McIndoe, a plastic surgeon from New Zealand.

What role did women play in medicine during the Second World War?

The Second World War opened up opportunities for women to work in new roles, although fewer male doctors were called up than in the First World War.

• ❖ Women worked as ambulance drivers, stretcher-bearers, and with the rescue services during air raids.
• ❖ Nurses were given military ranks from 1941, and had to take part in physical training after 1943. Many members of the Queen Alexandra Imperial Military Nursing Service (QAIMNS) served overseas.
• ❖ Members of the QAIMNS landed on the beaches of Normandy after D-Day in June 1944.
• ❖ More women studied medicine in 1946 than in 1938. In 1938, there were approximately 2,000 female medical students, which rose by 900 in 1946. Women doctors were more likely to work in hospitals.
• ❖ Children that were to be evacuated received a medical inspection by district nurses.