War Diaries Talk

surgeon general

  • erik.schaubroeckscarlet.be by erik.schaubroeckscarlet.be

    Is his rank general or surgeon general or is surgeon only an appointment?

    Posted

  • cyngast by cyngast moderator

    He is both a general and a surgeon and he is, or was as he is leaving, in command over the three field ambulances of the 5th Division.

    If you're wondering how to tag him, I would use General for his rank, and then add RAMC as his unit in the bottom space.

    Posted

  • marie.eklidvirginmedia.com by marie.eklidvirginmedia.com

    I thought his rank was Col. and maybe Surgeon General was an appointment.

    There is a reference here – see Paragraph No. 50 The Great War and the RAMC. Link: https://archive.org/stream/greatwarramc00brer/greatwarramc00brer_djvu.txt - Use Control Key and F key (find) and enter the name Sawyer – The name Sawyer will come up colour in the long article 5 times.

    “a message reached Colonel R. H. S. Sawyer, the A.D.M.S. of the Fifth Division, that one hundred wounded lay at the station. Through some error this had come direct to Dour instead of to the section at Boussu, which was much nearer. However, Colonel Sawyer heard that there was a train at St. Ghislain and sent up a locomotive. The train, when it arrived, carried two officers and forty- one other ranks British and one German. Others were added, a medical officer put on the train, and the whole sent on to Amiens”.

    ADMS : Assistant Director Medical Services

    He is also mentioned in despatches link: http://ukga.org/ww1/28942-mid.html

    Posted

  • cyngast by cyngast moderator

    Thanks, Marie. I stand corrected!

    Posted

  • marie.eklidvirginmedia.com by marie.eklidvirginmedia.com

    Cynthia, After I posted this, I was thinking I was wrong about it and maybe he was promoted to a General later on. 😃

    Posted

  • cyngast by cyngast moderator

    It's possible. I admit I don't know much about the RAMC ranks. Maybe someone else will be able to help here.

    Posted

  • marie.eklidvirginmedia.com by marie.eklidvirginmedia.com

    Cynthia, I did read this in another article:

    The Surgeon General is the professional head of the Defence Medical Services and
    responsible for the healthcare and medical operational capability. His responsibilities include defining the standard and quality of healthcare needed in both operational and non-operational environments and assuring its delivery. He is also responsible for setting the strategy and the associated (non-clinical) policies for the Defence Medical Services.

    Posted

  • marie.eklidvirginmedia.com by marie.eklidvirginmedia.com

    Cynthis, there is another article Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Army_Medical_Corps

    Stating:- “Unlike medical officers in some other countries, medical officers in the RAMC (and the Navy and Air Force) do not use the "Dr" prefix, in parentheses or otherwise, but only their rank, although they may be addressed informally as "Doctor". Neither do they prefix "Surgeon" in front of their rank as medical officers of the Royal Navy do (although they did until the end of the 19th century”.

    Posted