How will these resources help you?

World War I profoundly changed the world. It revealed the worst of humanity, the horrors in the trenches and the lifelong physical and emotional scars people suffered. However, it was also a period full of change, a time during which many new medicines and medical discoveries were made. In times of such crisis, medical advances are often accelerated in order to meet new challenges. This applies even in recent times with, for example, the fast rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations.

From the moment of the first death from a machine gun on the battlefield, the fate of the wounded was in the hands of medical innovation and people who devoted their lives to these medical advances. Amid the chaos and horror, innovators endeavoured to improve life for those wounded or disabled by war. Simply put, these innovators sought solutions to scientific problems. 

These sources aim to help teachers and students discuss the war from the point of view of reparation rather than destruction. Choosing to look at medicine is an effective way to understand people’s suffering and pain and their belief in life returning to normal. From treating fractures to facial reconstruction, to blood transfusions, medicine and science were forced to cope with the new types of physical and psychological wounds doctors and nurses were facing. The scope of these varying sources, for example, websites, videos and books, will enable teachers to create engaging teaching sessions using enquiry questions such as ‘How did medicine evolve during World War I?’, ‘How were people treated for physical injuries?’ and ‘What were the psychological consequences of trench warfare?’.