(Quarterly Report courtesy of Gary Epple) (5th Field Hospital photo courtesy of Sgt. Robt. H. McWilliam -back row, 7th from left )
Excerpt from the report...
"This unit's special mission of caring for the civilian internees at Santo Tomas Internment Camp presented several supply problems not previously encountered. This was the first time the hospital had treated civilians. There was available to us the 15th Medical Supply Aviation Platoon which did a superior job during the emergency period. We were fortunate in being able to procure a set of obstetrical instruments from a former civilian hospital. The procurement of insulin was difficult with little available on the base. The demand for tetanus anti-toxin was tenfold greater than the supply. In civilian areas that have undergone bombing and shelling, the need for this item should be anticipated. With the large number of diarrheas, dysenterys, and hookworm diseases to contend with, the demand for drugs peculiar to these diseases overtaxed the available supply. Drugs like emetine hydrochloride and hexylresorcinol were difficult to obtain."
The quarterly report was written by Lt. Col. George Austen, Jr. Medical Corps Commanding Officer. It starts with a description of its base in Hollandia, Dutch New Guinea and goes on to describe their assignment to the Philippines, landing on Leyte and continuing on to Manila. There they encamped on the grounds of the Santo Tomas University immediately after its liberation from the Japanese military. They proceeded to treat the wounded from the recent battle of Manila. The report also summarizes the conditions found at camp, medical conditions of the internees, diseases treated and number of deaths. This is an interesting and very rare first-hand report of the conditions found in war torn Manila.
The report is provided in Adobe Acrobat 6.0 format. If you do not have Acrobat Reader, please click below to download a free copy before attempting to read the report.
