EIGHTY YEARS ON – EL ALAMEIN
For Australians serving in the Second World War, 1942 proved to be a turning point in many theatres. In North Africa, the first and second Battles of El Alamein between July and November 1942 prevented the Axis forces from advancing further into Egypt. The victory was the beginning of the end of the Western Desert Campaign and revived the morale of the Allied forces. Captain J.C. Bishop, RAMC, describes his experiences as a battle casualty after being bombed near El Alamein and losing his arm consequently. His description of his clinical treatment, including an amputation in the casualty clearing station, is sobering reading and provides some guidance on management of trauma victims that remains relevant today.
In addition to the Abstracts for the AMMA Conference, our fourth issue of 2022 contains a limited number of articles on a diverse range of topics from the use or robotic systems in injury care, the role of military leadership in improving civilian Trauma Medicine training, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and dual loyalty and the medical profession for Australian Defence Force Medical Officers. We continue to attract a good range of articles, including from overseas, as is demonstrated in this issue with articles from Australia and the United States. Other military and veterans’ health articles, however, are always very welcome, and we would encourage all our readers to consider writing on their areas of military or veterans’ health interest. We would particularly welcome papers based on presentations given at or planned for our 2022 conferences, but welcome any articles across the broader spectrum of military health.
Dr Andy Robertson, CSC, PSM Commodore, RAN
Editor-in-Chief
