Inventors
Ambulance
History
By
Mary
Bellis
During
the Crusades of the 11th Century, the Knights of St John received instruction
in first-aid treatment from Arab and Greek doctors. The Knights of St John
then acted as the first emergency workers, treating soldiers on both sides
of the war of the battlefield and bringing in the wounded to nearby tents
for further treatment. The concept of ambulance service started in Europe
with the Knights of St John, at the same time it had also become common
practice for small rewards to be paid to soldiers who carried the wounded
bodies of other soldiers in for medical treatment.
The Surgeon-in-Chief of the French
Grand Army, "Baron Dominiquie Larrey" created the first official army medical
corp. in 1792. Trained attendants with equipment moved out from the field
hospitals to give first-aid to the wounded on the battlefield and/or carried
them back by stretcher, hand-carts and wagons to the field hospitals.
Motorized ambulance vehicles have
been in use since the beginning of the 20th century. In the 1950s the United
States pioneered helicopter-ambulances during the Korean War. In 1968,
St Vincent's Hospital in New York City started the first mobile coronary
care unit - Source.
Photos
of Historical Ambulances
Related Information
Automobile
Medical
Innovations
image courtesy
National Institutes of Health
Important disclaimer information about this About site.
|