The Medics' War: United States Army in the Korean War

United States Army in the Korean War #5

by Albert E. Cowdrey

Once termed a police action, the Korean War was fought by massed armies on a constricted field of operations. Its battles were as intense as those of any other war this century. The Medics' War views this conflict from an uncommon angle. It documents the efforts of American Army doctors, nurses, and enlisted medics to save life and repair the damages wrought by wounds and disease. Though the charges of biological warfare made at the time are shown to have no foundation, the disease-ridden environment of wartime Korea aided the side with the best medical care. The real MASH clearly emerges in this study, along with the variety of technical innovations produced by the conflict that have advanced medical science. The perspective of The Medics' War is an enlightening one, showing that the compassionate treatment of both United Nations and enemy wounded preserved human values in the midst of bitter, unforgiving strife. Civilian and military readers alike will gain from it a deeper understanding of the processes, destructive and reconstructive, that together made up the human experience of the Korean War. William A. Stofft Brigadier General, USA Chief of Military History

416 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Educated at Tulane University (B.A. 1956; Ph.D. 1971) and Johns Hopkins (M.A. 1957), Albert E. Cowdrey was a historian for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and, for many years, the U.S. Army Center of Military History. As Chief of the U.S. Army's Special History Branch in Washington, DC, he wrote extensively about the medical branches of the Army.

Reviews

[Larry Schwartz · Rating 4 out of 5]

For my dad, S/SGT Jerrold J Schwartz, 115 Med Bat (CLR), 40th Inf Div (1929-2012)