amputation of fingers

[FrancesH]

A question, for anyone with knowledge of treatment of amputation!

 

2/Lt Ivor Cochrane's middle, ring and little fingers were damaged when an improvised grenade he was constructing exploded in his right hand. He travelled back to Britain from Suvla Bay on board the hospital ship Oxfordshire. On re-reading his service record, I was surprised to realise that it states that his fingers were amputated not on board the ship, but by his father (a colliery doctor in the Rhondda, who no doubt saw some pretty challenging injuries in his time) after Ivor returned home. Does this surprise other readers, with more knowledge than I have about medical services in 1915?

[squirrel]

Presumably it would depend on how well the fingers had responded to what treatment had been given  in Gallipoli, subsequent treatment on the journey home and the condition the fingers were in when he eventually arrived home.

 

Many wounds were still infected when wounded soldiers returned to UK and subsequent, sometimes radical treatment was needed to prevent the spread of infection and allow wounds to heal. Subsequent amputation was sometimes necessary. In the early part of the war standard medical procedure was to disinfect wounds and then stitch and bandage them sealing in any remaining infection. Debridement to remove dead and damaged tissue was not standard procedure at that time.

[TEW]

Sir Ranulph Fiennes amputated his own so although unusual perhaps not that surprising.

 

The accident would have been classed as a self-inflicted wound had it been an ordinary rank.  Enquiries, court martial, etc. Assumed guilty until proved otherwise.

 

Unauthorised amputation of own fingers would no doubt get an ordinary rank into double trouble with little way out.

 

Same should apply to an officer but I doubt it did.

 

Be interesting to see a unit diary to see how it was recorded. Anything in his record to suggest inquests etc?

TEW

[FrancesH]

Interesting! I hadn't even thought about the disciplinary aspect. Ivor Cochrane was the bombing officer and was demonstrating how to make and use improvised bombs using a meat tin to a group of OR when the explosive went off prematurely. Five of his audience were also injured. The War Diary entry reads: '2/Lt Cochrane and 5 men injured by a premature explosion of a bomb in 2/Lt Cochrane's hand'. There are no further references to Cochrane in the WD. His service record shows that he was attached to the reserve battalion as a training officer by December, and subsequently served in Salonika in 1918. 

 

As for the fingers themselves, I think Squirrel's comment about infection is bang on -- Dr Cochrane would no doubt have been very familiar with infected wounds as a colliery doctor and recognised that action was needed. 

 

Thank you both!