England

Vernon Hall, Sudbury, England

 

The 108th General Hospital Unit left for England on 8 October 1943. Once docked in Liverpool, they were sent to Sudbury, Derbyshire, where the 28th Station Hospital was situated.  Arriving on 20 October 1943, the 108th took over the administration of a 750 bed station hospital attached to an army supply depot. Nurses immediately started work caring for patients.  On 8 November 1943, ten nurses were sent with the detachment force to Daveyhume Hospital in Manchester, where they saw overflow patients. The first ten nurses were soon followed by an additional ten nurses. On 24 January 1944 the nurses on detached service returned to the unit.

News article on the 108th General Hospital in England

The hospital occupied by the 108th General Hosptial was located on the estate of Lord and Lady Vernon, who allowed the use of their gardens and out-buildings by patients for entertainment and relaxation.  During this time the 108th's commanding officer, Col. Joseph Gallagher, was sent back to the United States as a medical disability. He was replaced by Lt. Col. Louis Rousselot (Medical Corps), formerly Chief of Surgery at St. Vincent's in New York City. 

While in England, the nurses of the 108th developed new skills by taking over tasks that they hadn't performed while working in civilian hospitals, including taking blood pressures and administering IV's. Loyola graduate Cecelia Fennessy later recalled that much of their proficiency in IV administration came from their care of soldiers with syphilis and other venereal diseases, perhaps the most common diseases treated at the station hospital. At first these diseases were treated through an intensive therapy involving administrating of drugs such as Bismuth and Mapharside, known as the 20-Day treatment. Eventually a new wonder drug, penicillin, was introduced to treat venereal diseases. The 108th was the lucky recipient of the first vials of penicillin available for this treatment.

108th General Hospital Unit patients

While at Sudbury, the nurses of the 108th cared for 5,209 in-patients and 5,431 out-patients. Chief Nurse Capt. Sara Abrams was assisted in overseeing 28 Charge Nurses and 66 Staff Nurses by the following:

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