Author(s): Rod Searle; Denise Bell; Paul Danaher (Editor); Gregory Anderson (Cover Design by, Editor, Designed by); 1st (Aust) Field Hospital Association Incorporated (Produced by)

Military

This book is dedicated to the men and women who served with the 1st Australian Field Hospital (1 AFH) during the Vietnam War in Vung Tau, South Vietnam, from 1 April 1968 when the unit was raised, until it returned to Australia on 25 November 1971. It honours them and the patients who passed through the hospital doors, into their care. Australians fought in the Vietnam War between 1962 - 1975. The hospital comprised triage, operating theatres, pathology, pharmacy, X-ray, physiotherapy, psychiatry, outpatients, RAP, a six-bed intensive care ward and 50 bed medical and 50 bed surgical ward. It was also supported by a Q-store, an orderly room, messes and accommodation. Units attached to the hospital were the 33rd Dental Unit, 1st Field Medical and Dental Stores, 1st Field Hygiene Company, Chaplains and Australian Red Cross representatives. Medical services provided by the hospital were of such a high standard that the survival rate, for soldiers arriving at the hospital alive, was 99%. This success rate still stands today as a truly remarkable achievement! On the 7th November 1971, Australia's combat role in the Vietnam conflict ended when the 4th Battalion Royal Australian Regiment completed its withdrawal from Nui Dat.Call Sign Vampire provides a window into the frenetic world of a military hospital in a war zone. It draws on the experiences of hospital personnel remembering their work and environment, on patients recalling their firsthand experiences, on helicopter pilots and medics describing the evacuation of casualties to the Vampire Pad at the hospital. It recounts stories from the wounded, reliving what happened to them when they became battle casualties and their subsequent treatment. This book is a celebration of the dedication temerity and care of a unique group of Australians, thrown together to get on with the job of treating the injured and wounded, a consequence of Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War. In December 1971, after returning to Australia, 1 AFH relocated to Manunda Lines, Ingleburn NSW and the unit was re-designated as 1st Field Hospital where it operated as a closed hospital facility.