Army Health System Support in the Forgotten Theater: China-Burma-India, 1942-1944

Abstract

This study is a critical examination of Army Health System support in the China-Burma-India (CBI) theater from 1942-1944. In CBI, the Theater Surgeon was tasked with two primary missions: to train and equip the Chinese Army's exhausted and ill-equipped medical units and to enable the Northern Combat Area Command's (NCAC) combat operations in northern Burma. Presenting each mission as a case study, this paper seeks to answer the question of how effectively the Army Medical Department supported the attainment of the United States' political and military objectives in CBI. The study concludes that the Medical Department successfully generated a sustainment structure within the Chinese army that, however incomplete, was resilient enough to withstand the rigors of large scale combat. In contrast, while the NCAC's mission to seize Myitkyina was an operational success, the Medical Department's failure to plan adequately for its conduct contributed significantly to an avoidable medical calamity.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 23, 2019
Accession Number
AD1084994

Entities

People

  • Samuel J. Diehl

Organizations

  • United States Army Command and General Staff College

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Case Studies
  • Combat Areas
  • Combat Operations
  • Employment
  • Fish
  • Health Services
  • Logistics
  • Medical Evacuation
  • Medical Personnel
  • Military History
  • Military Hospitals
  • Military Medicine
  • Military Science
  • Organizational Structure
  • Second World War
  • Therapy
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Maritime Combat Support and Expeditionary Logistics.
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.