War Diaries Talk

NEWBIE Question: Casualty Sick or Departed Sick?

  • KPepper by KPepper

    What is the difference between "Casualty: Sick or Wounded" and "Departed: Sick" (i.e., if it says a soldier is in the hospital for the flu, has he "departed" or is he a casualty?) Also, why is there a "Departed:Sick" but not a "Departed: Wounded"? I'd like to get it right, and didn't see a clear explanation for the difference in the FAQ.

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  • cyngast by cyngast moderator

    In your example, I would use the "Casualty: Sick or Wounded" tag if the man has just gone to the hospital for the flu. It seems that means he is at the field ambulance assigned to the unit. If the comment says that someone was evacuated to a Casualty Clearing Station or the UK, or invalided to the UK, then he has "Departed: Sick" because he has gone further along in the chain.

    I can't answer your question about why not a "Departed: Wounded" tag? Maybe ral104, the moderator, also known as Rob, can answer that the next time he is here.

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  • ral104 by ral104 moderator, scientist

    When we were setting the tags up, I think the intention was that 'Casualty:sick or wounded' covered most medical reasons that would see a man depart his immediate unit. 'Departed: sick' is very similar, and often the two can be used interchangeably, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. But it also covers departure from secondary units like the Field Ambulance, where the man wouldn't be thought of as a casualty from that unit, but as somebody who was admitted to their care and then departed for some reason. So while 'Departed:sick' does on the face of it seem unnecessary given that we have 'Casualty: sick or wounded', it actually covers a subtly different set of circumstances.

    Hope that helps! 😃

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  • KPepper by KPepper in response to ral104's comment.

    Thanks Ral104! I guess part of my confusion was not knowing whether the hospital was in the same location as the soldiers (the equivalent of walking across a parking lot to another building/tent) so they hadn't really "departed" or whether the hospital was always elsewhere, in which case, they did depart. I can see from your explanation though that I don't need to worry about it. Thanks!

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  • ral104 by ral104 moderator, scientist

    No problem!

    There was a chain of evacuation for wounded men, which started at the regimental aid post. This is a good summary of how it worked: http://www.ramc-ww1.com/chain_of_evacuation.php

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  • KPepper by KPepper

    Great reading! I am definitely learning a lot here which is fun. Thanks!

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  • ral104 by ral104 moderator, scientist

    Glad it helped - just let us know if you need a hand with anything else. We're always happy to help.

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  • cyngast by cyngast moderator

    KPepper, before I started working on this project what I knew about WWI, and particularly the British aspect of it because I am American, would have fit in a thimble. I've been actively tagging and learning now for about two years and it is just amazing to me what I have learned! There's always something new coming up.

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