Doctor

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See also, details of some individual Doctors and Surgeons.

A doctor may also be known as a Surgeon or (prior to 1873) an Assistant Surgeon. The term Medical Officer is also used. Most of this article refers to surgeons who were employed by the Bengal, Madras, Bombay or Indian Medical Service/Departments. However some surgeons in British Army regiments were part of the Royal Army Medical Corps of the British Army.

For Assistant Surgeons from 1894, refer Apothecary

On 3 April 1943, the Indian Medical Service was amalgamated into the Indian Army Medical Corps, along with the Indian Medical Department, and the Indian Hospital & Nursing Corps

This article contains many links to historical online books.

Records

British Library

The British Library information page 'Indian Medical Service' lists records available in the BL.

There are also “detailed records of service of surgeons and assistant-surgeons, compiled at East India House” to 1858. Bengal Service Army Lists - Medical IOR/L/MIL/10/70-74 c 1765-1858 and LDS microfilm catalogue entry; Madras Service Army Lists - Medical IOR/L/MIL/11/70-72 c 1760-1858 and LDS microfilm catalogue entry; Bombay Service Army Lists - Medical IOR/L/MIL/12/85-87 1763-1858 and LDS microfilm catalogue entry. It is not known to what extent these records are included in Crawford’s book Roll of the Indian Medical Service, refer below.

The following records are available on the pay website findmypast (as at June 2014) as a special section of the British India Office Collection [1]:

  • IOR/L/MIL/9/358, 360-364, 366-396 Assistant-Surgeons’ Papers, 1804-1854
  • IOR/L/MIL/9/397-408 Papers of Assistant-Surgeons selected by the Board of Examiners,, 1855-1881
  • IOR/L/MIL/9/409 Annual list of Assistant-Surgeons appointed giving Presidency, nominating Director and date of appointment, with separate lists of rank, 1787-1791
  • IOR/L/MIL/9/410 Annual lists of Assistant-Surgeons appointed giving Presidency, nominating Director, date of appointment and ship, 1791-1814
  • IOR/L/MIL/9/411 Annual lists of rank of Assistant-Surgeons, Madras Bengal and Bombay, 1794-1814
  • IOR/L/MIL/9/412 Register of candidates for Assistant-Surgeon posts giving address, dates of application and examination, result, and date of returning diplomas. 1865-1877
  • IOR/L/MIL/9/413-418 Papers of Surgeons selected by the Board of Examiners, 1882-1894
  • IOR/L/MIL/9/419 Papers of candidates selected for the Indian Medical Service, 1895-1896

Two histories of the Indian Medical Service, which also contain some biographical details are:

  • A History of the Indian Medical Service, 1600-1913 (two volumes) by D. G. Crawford 1914. The book is available as a LDS microfilm, with this library catalogue entry. This book, in two volumes, is available to read online on the Digital Library of India website.
  • Surgeons twoe and a Barber. Being some account of the life and work of the Indian Medical Service, 1600-1947 by Lieut.-Colonel Donald McDonald 1950. (This book appears in the catalogue under the name MacDonald). More details about the book are contained in these reviews: Review 1 and Review 2

A pdf document by the Wellcome Library lists records in the British Library relating to medicine and health, including manuscripts.

Science and the Changing Environment in India 1780-1920: A Guide to Sources in the India Office Records by Richard Axelby and Savithri Preetha Nair 2009. The guide is arranged in eleven chapters including one in respect of health and disease including medical education. Refer Research guides reading list for more details of this book.

Lists of medical officers

Two particularly useful books, listing service histories etc, are:

Other lists:

Royal Army Medical Corps and the earlier British Army Medical Services

The Royal Army Medical Corps was established by Royal Warrant on 23rd June 1898. Prior to this there had been two distinct organisations within the Army Medical Services, the Medical Staff (i.e. the officers), and the Medical Staff Corps , which were combined to form the RAMC.

For British Army medical personnel, the Army Medical Services Museum's FAQs page advises that the AMSM has some details for officers who held a regular commission with the Army Medical Department and the RAMC until 1960. Service records for men and women discharged prior to 1920 are held at The National Archives and at the Army Personnel Centre for discharges after this. (It's unclear whether the latter setence includes officers or refers to men and women who were not officers). The museum has a small booklet available with useful advice for researching relatives who served with the AMS. Also refer British Army

The British Library has the India Office Records British Army in India: British Medical Officers serving in India IOR/L/MIL/15/20 1872-1912

The book Commissioned Officers in the Medical Services of the British Army, 1660-1960, published 1968, is available at the British Library

Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps is available online from 1966, however most articles now appear to require a payment or subscription (free to BMA members). Earlier issues are available to purchase on DVD from the shop of the Army Medical Services Museum. "Since its early days the Journal also published “Corps News” which gave details of personal occurences of members of the RAMC including the promotion and postings of officers, honours and awards, qualifications gained by senior NCOs of the Corps, casualties whilst on campaign and obituaries of serving officers", according to this archived webpage. Note the "Corps News" appears to be at the back of each monthly edition, and does not appear to be indexed. "The Journal appears to be available at the British Library, but the volumes held are unclear.

First World War

Many doctors were granted temporary commissions in the RAMC. Unfortunately, as the RAMC (Temp) officers only served for the duration of the war, their service records were destroyed after 1920. Those for RAMC officers who received permanent commissions between 1871 and 1922, accessible via the index in WO 338/23, are listed in WO 339
The catalogue entry for WO 339 advises it includes records of British reserve officers who were commissioned into the Indian Army.

Historical books online

Volume 25, Jul –Dec 1915

Volume 25 Index

1 (Jul)

Corps News

2 (Aug)

Corp News

3 (Sep)

Corps News

5 (Nov)

Corps News

Volume 30, Jan—Jun 1918

Volume 30 Index

2 (Feb)

Corps News

3 (Mar)

Corps News

4 (Apr)

Corps News

5 (May)

Corps News

6 (Jun)

Corps News

Volume 31, Jul-Dec 1918

Volume 31 Index

1 (Jul)

Corps News

2 (Aug)

Corps News

3 (Sep)

Corps News

4 (Oct)

Corps News

6 (Dec)

Corps News

Other

The British Medical Journal is available online from 1840 and is a source of information, particularly the obituaries. It probably has more relevance for English, rather than Scottish doctors. However, it is now only available to those who have a personal or institutional subscription. Search the archives directly or access BMJ and other online journals through PubMed Central (PMC is the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) free digital archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature). Some editions are available online at Archive.org (refer below)

Historical background

Also see Public health

Working conditions and duties

Volume 1 1839,Volume 2 1840,Volume 3 1841, Volume 4 1842,Volume 5 1843,Volume 6 1844
  • Madras Quarterly Journal of Medical Science Google Books
Volume 1 1860, Volume 2 1861, Volume 3 1861, Volume 4 1862, Volume 5 1862, Volume 6 1863,Volume 7 1863, Volume 8 1865, Volume 9 1866, Volume 10 1866, Volume 11 1867, Volume 12 1868, Index to Volumes 1-12, pages 409-470 of Volume 12
  • The Madras Monthly Journal of Medical Science Google Books
Volume 2 July-December 1870Index, Volume 3, January-June 1871 Index, Volume 4, July-December 1871 Index
1914:1

1914:2

1915:1

1915:2

1916:1

1916:2

1917:1

1917:2

1918:1

1918:2

1919:1

1919:2

1920:1

1920:2

1921:1

1921:2

1922:1

1922:2

1923:1

1923:2


Appointment

For appointment procedures, refer to the Individuals section Doctors and Surgeons and George Aldred.

Field hospitals

William Lewis M'Gregor, a surgeon himself, writing in his The history of the Sikhs (Vol 1, 1846), describes the work of a regimental surgeon during the 1st Sikh War and calls for field hospitals to be used in future conflicts. "The Loodianah Field Hospital, With Remarks On The State of The Army Medical Department in India" by John Murray, M.D., Field Surgeon, page 158, Medical Times (published in 1849) is an account of a Field Hospital after battle in 1846, including medical details, with the slightly wounded carried out on elephants. "Field Arrangements in India" from Army Hygiene by Charles Alexander Gordon M.D. (1866) describes the Logistics of a Field Hospital, including details of the number of camels required.

Civil Surgeons

Civil Surgeons, it seems, led demanding and frustrating lives although the pay was better than in the Military and the range of professional duties greater.

Assistant Surgeons, and sometimes Surgeons, in civil employment were often Superintendent of Jails

Non-medical duties

Some surgeons were engaged in work which today would be regarded as scientific or senior administrative roles. Most of the botanists in the earlier years were surgeons, see botanists and naturalists for more information. WCB Eatwell MD was ‘First Asst. and Opium Examiner. Board of Customs, Salt and Opium’. He was the author of “Report no.1: On the Poppy Cultivation, and the Benares Opium Agency” from Selections from the Records of the Government of Bengal (1851) Google Books.

“Doctors as Civil and Political Officers” by Lieut-Col D G Crawford I.M.S from The Indian Medical Gazette, Volume 39, 1904, page 1.

External links

Notes

  1. The British in India Collection British Library Help for Researchers