Sanitārā‚ situācija Latgalē Neatkarības kara laikā (1920): Latvijas armijas konteksts. (Latvian)

In Latvia and also in Latgale, the sustained military action determined the sanitary situation. As the result of World War I and the War of Independence, infective diseases were common in Latvia, no hygiene requirements were met, people were short of clothing and food. The material aid provided by foreign missions improved the situation. The Sanitation Administration of the Latvian Army established on 19 July, 1919 was responsible for the military medicine during the War of Independence. Its obligations included taking care of organizational and supply duties and the sanitary situation in the Latvian Army and the country at large. Several factors determined the placement of military medicine institutions subordinated to the Sanitation Administration, namely, the location of the enemy forces, the front line, and the resources. The attack of the West Russian Volunteer Army was a difficult challenge for the Sanitation Administration, because the number of the wounded during the combat rose rapidly; and it had to deal with the consequences in a short period of time, i.e., the wave of patients in the medical institution and the shortage of staff and resources. After winning the West Russian Volunteer Army, all forces of the Latvian Army were gathered for the attack in the Latgale front. When commencing the Latgale liberation operation in January 1920, the infectious diseases started to spread in the territory of Latvia, for example, epidemic typhus, which was followed by dysentery in the summer of 1920. The Sanitation Administration issued different regulations and orders to restrict the epidemics and was following the dynamics of the ill and the deceased to control the spread of the diseases. The numbers of the ill and the deceased were high in Daugavpils garrison field hospital in 1920, but they dropped by the end of the summer, proving that the Sanitation Administration was able to stabilize the sanitary situation in Latgale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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