Abstract

This I.S. seeks to answer two questions: Firstly, what challenges did British/Commonwealth and American medical personnel face on the Western Front of WWI? Secondly, what were their solutions to these challenges? The medical history of WWI has grown into a substantial field since the early 2010s when it began receiving more attention from scholars, particularly those interested in the wide societal implications of the war. I have analyzed ten memoirs written by medical personnel. Most were authored by surgeons, with two by nurses, and one by an ambulance driver. Of the challenges they faced, I identified three main categories: treating new wounds under new conditions, navigating logistical and bureaucratic difficulties, and dealing with psychological strain and cultural expectations. Medical personnel leveraged emerging technologies to create solutions to challenges in the first category, but the conditions of the front could limit their effectiveness. Personnel had less agency in addressing challenges from the second category, but utilized resources from the homefront and adapted in other ways. In regards to the third category, personnel’s religious and patriotic convictions were tested and did not always survive. Women created solutions to overcome the obstacles they faced when seeking to participate in medicine on an equal level as men. Studying medical personnel’s experience provides a window into WWI’s aftermath in a raw and immediate form. Their stories help us understand the implications of WWI as the first modern, total war and how it reshaped the world.

Advisor

Shaya, Greg

Department

History

Disciplines

Canadian History | European History | History of Science, Technology, and Medicine | Military History | Women's History

Keywords

WWI, Great War, medicine, military history, medical history, U.K., Britain, British Empire, United States, Canada, technology, wounds

Publication Date

2026

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis

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© Copyright 2026 Benjamin W. Witt