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Smiling Purple Heart recipient in
sick bay
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Sick
Bay is the Ship’s medical center. During battle, there were
several "dressing stations" and "aid units"
located throughout the Ship in addition to Sick Bay.
Due to
their size, battleships had more extensive medical facilities than
smaller ships. Since smaller ships might not have an operating room
or even a doctor, they would send patients to the larger ships when
needed.
According
to Organization & Regulations USS NORTH CAROLINA, Sick Bay had
a staff of 39 people:
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4 doctors
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3 dentists |
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1 pharmacist |
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1 chief pharmacist’s
mate* |
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22 pharmacist’s
mates* |
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8 hospital apprentices
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*
equivalent of hospital corpsmen in today’s Navy |
"We
had sick call every morning. The bugler sounded ‘sick call’
and the word was passed over the public address system. If you needed
to go, you notified your division petty officer and then you reported
to sick bay. A pharmacist’s mate wrote up your complaint and
either took care of you himself or referred you to one of the ship’s
four doctors. One time my gums were infected. After I was treated,
I went for a follow-up exam and the doctor asked me about my tonsils.
I said they seemed fine. The doctor asked me if I got colds and
when I said sometimes, the doctor said ‘Let’s take out
your tonsils.’ So he did using a local anesthetic. I remember
hearing the scissors cut them out. You could also arrange dental
appointments for check-ups, not just for emergencies."
- Paul A. Wieser
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