The field hospitals where A.P. Hoadley worked during much
of the war were makeshift and crude. They were set up in tents and
barns, on front porches and under trees--wherever surgeons could
find a sheltered spot beyond the range of enemy artillery. With
the first sounds of gunfire, orderlies were sent out to collect
the wounded. They loaded them into horse-drawn carriages, stretchers,
and two-wheeled carts that were known as "hop, step and jumps"
or "avalanches," because of the torturous jostling that
victims had to endure on their way to the rear.
Hospitals were so understaffed that the wounded often lay on the
bare ground for hours before receiving any medical attention. They
cried out in misery, but whiskey was the only available painkiller,
and nurses administered sips sparingly.
Once their turn at the surgeon's table finally came, patients faced
yet another danger--infection--a complication that could be just
as deadly as flying bullets. While most Civil War surgeons were
aware that clean conditions somehow reduced the rate of infection,
they did not know the value of sterilizing their instruments. Sometimes
water was so scarce in the outdoor hospitals that a surgeon operated
for an entire day without washing his hands or his equipment. Between
cases, he swiped his bloody hands across his apron or cleaned his
knife on the nearest rag, then went on with his work, unknowingly
spreading life-threatening bacteria from one patient to the next.
Those fortunate enough to survive an operation in the field were
eventually moved to general hospitals that sprung up in many cities
near the war zones. While these wards were often breeding grounds
for infections such as gangrene and blood poisoning, they were also
the site of several important medical advancements. As the war dragged
on, doctors slowly discovered the importance of ventilation and
isolating infected patients. And the U.S. Sanitary Commission, founded
in 1861, provided trained nurses and inspectors, who placed an increasing
emphasis on cleanliness in army camps and hospitals.
Still, these improvements seemed insignificant in the face of so
much suffering. By the end of the War, nearly a half million soldiers
would perish from wounds or disease.