Askerî Sağlık Hizmetleri Üzerine Bir Değerlendirme: Balkan Harbi’nde Seyyar Hastaneler (1912-1913)
Mobile Hospitals in the Balkan War (1912-1913): An Assessment of Military Medical Services

Summary/Abstract: During the classical period, Ottoman health services were divided into two categories: military and civilian. The health needs of the people, the military and the members of the court were managed by the chief physician. Due to increasing military failures in the 19th century, it was decided to reorganize health services for the army. Guided by European experts, several reforms were made in the military healthcare system and military hospitals were established. Military hospitals and regimental aid posts delivered routine medical care to soldiers during peacetime. During wartime, additional medical units were established alongside permanent hospitals. In this regard, base hospitals, field hospitals, reserve hospitals, and mobile hospitals were among the other facilities established near the front lines to provide medical services. Mobile hospitals emerged during wartime as a response to the insufficiency of the army’s stationary healthcare facilities. They provided care for patients who were too weak to walk and could not be transported from the battlefield or aid stations until they recovered enough to be moved. This study examines the operations, activities, and various challenges of mobile hospitals that served on the Eastern Thrace front during the Balkan War, based on documents from the Military History Archive of the Ministry of National Defense.

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