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Military Health System

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Our History

Military medicine has a long and celebrated history. We apply lessons from our past to improve the care of military personnel and their families today and in the future. New surgical techniques, powerful painkillers, antibiotic drugs, and triage and evacuation procedures have revolutionized military medicine.

In this section, you'll find featured stories and information about the history of military medicine.

You also may be interested in...

Innovations in Military Medicine Recognized by Military Health System

Article
2/24/2023
U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Telita Crosland, director of the Defense Health Agency, presents Beverly Luce, senior nurse consultant with DHA’s Primary Care Clinical Management Team, the Federal Military Nursing Leadership Excellence Award. Luce was given the award during the Military Health System awards ceremony at National Harbor, Maryland, on Feb. 16.  

The Military Health System and AMSUS, the society of federal health professionals, presented a series of awards.

Defense Health Agency Director Promoted to Lieutenant General

Article
2/3/2023
Lt. Gen. Telita Crosland, the Defense Health Agency’s fourth director and first African American DHA director, poses with family and friends after she was promoted to Lieutenant General on Jan. 20, 2023. (Photo by Robert Hammer)

The new Defense Health Agency director pinned on her third star during a ceremony at Fort Myer Memorial Chapel, Virginia, on Jan. 20, 2023.

Historical Perspective: The Critical Role of Disease and Non-Battle Injuries in Soldiers Isolated on Pacific Islands During the Second World War

Article
2/1/2023
SoldiersPacificWWII

This Historical Perspective discusses catastrophic casualties among U.S. and Japanese forces due to failed supply lines during World War II in the Pacific.

NICoE Deputy Director Receives Department of Defense's Highest Civilian Honor

Article
1/27/2023
U.S. Army Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Ronald J. Place  and Dr. Louis French at award ceremony

The work of one of the Department of Defense’s foremost experts on the treatment of traumatic brain injury was recently honored with the department's highest award given to career DOD civilian employees.

DHA Will Serve “Anytime, Anywhere – Always,” Says New Director

Article
1/4/2023
U.S. Army Maj. Gen. (Dr.) Telita Crosland becomes the Defense Health Agency's fourth director at a ceremony held in Falls Church, Virginia, on Jan. 3.

The new director of the Defense Health Agency, U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Telita Crosland accepted her new role as leader of the Department of Defense’s medical agency.

Dedicated Korean War Navy Medic Worked “Feverishly” to Save Lives

Article
9/22/2022
Profile photo of a sailor

U.S. Navy Hospitalman Francis Hammond was awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor for selflessly saving lives and risking his own during the Korean War.

Facility Dogs Play a Vital Role in Recovery for Patients Across the MHS

Article
5/27/2022
Luke is a German Shephard facility dog.

Each dog has his or her own rank, service, and uniform and is inducted in an enlistment or commissioning ceremony. Today, the Facility Dog Program at WRNMMC includes Sully, a yellow Lab who was former President George H.W. Bush’s service dog.

'America’s First Brain Surgeon' Served During Civil War and World War I

Article
5/17/2022
Dr. William Williams Keen Jr was a medical surgeon during the Civil War who afterwards advocated and researched medical advances so the horrors of Civil War-era medicine would not occur again. He also served in the Army during World War I.

The Army’s Dr. William Williams Keen helped to shape military medicine for more than 50 years – from the Civil War to World War I.

Vietnam War Commemoration Presents DHA Director with Commemorative Flag

Article
4/28/2022
U.S. Army Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Ron Place, Defense Health Agency director, receives a commemorative Vietnam War flag from Army Maj. Gen. (Retired) Peter Aylward, The United States of America Vietnam Commemoration director. (Photo: Sonia Clark, MHS Communications)

Lt. Gen. Place receives Vietnam War commemorative flag.

A History of the Combat Helmet and the Quest to Prevent Injuries

Article
4/25/2022
Lt. Gen. George S. Patton and Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt Jr. are pictured here in 1943 wearing the standard M1 helmet, sometimes called the "steel pot." (Photo: 1st Infantry Division Courtesy Photo)

The combat helmet has evolved over time to improve protection against projectiles and shock waves to reduce the risk of fatal blows and traumatic brain injuries.

Ceremony Marks New Name for RIA Health Clinic to Woodson Health Clinic, Honoring World War II Combat Medic

Article
4/21/2022
Stephen Woodson looks at the plaque painting of his father, Staff Sgt. Waverly Woodson Jr., a World War II First U.S. Army combat medic hero, following the unveiling of it during a renaming dedication ceremony at Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, April 14. The health clinic was renamed Woodson Health Clinic. (Photo: Jon Micheal Connor, ASC Public Affairs)

The Rock Island Arsenal Health Clinic received a new name in honor of a heroic First U.S. Army Soldier in a moving ceremony here in Heritage Hall April 14. The new name is the Woodson Health Clinic in honor of Staff Sgt. Waverly B. Woodson Jr.

Remembering Dr. Alexander Augusta, the U.S. Army’s First Black Doctor

Article
2/25/2022
A photo of Maj. (Dr.) Alexander Augusta among the Seventh Regiment of U.S. Colored Troops where he served as regimental surgeon during the Civil War.

Dr. Alexander Augusta was the first African American to be an Army doctor.

Dentally Unready: Gen. George Washington's Lifetime of Dental Misery

Article
2/3/2022
Visitors to the George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate and museum in Mount Vernon, Virginia, can see George Washington’s only remaining full denture among the collection. They include his own pulled and saved teeth, other human teeth, teeth from cows and horses that were filed to fit, and teeth carved from elephant ivory.

No, George Washington did not have wooden teeth. But he did struggle with dental problems for most of his life.

The British 'Limeys' Were Right: A Short History of Scurvy

Article
1/10/2022
Scurvy, a disease caused by lack of vitamin C, sickened sailors who had no access to fresh food supplies, and killed more than 2 million sailors between the 16th and 18th centuries alone.

How citrus fruits quelled the scourge of scurvy.

Remembering the Military Medical Heroes of Pearl Harbor

Article
12/6/2021
Army Nurse Corps Maj. Annie G. Fox, in the newspaper

On the 80th anniversary of the attacks on Pearl Harbor, MHS remembers the medical heroes that selflessly aided the casualties.

Innovations in Military Medicine Recognized by Military Health System

Article
2/24/2023
U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Telita Crosland, director of the Defense Health Agency, presents Beverly Luce, senior nurse consultant with DHA’s Primary Care Clinical Management Team, the Federal Military Nursing Leadership Excellence Award. Luce was given the award during the Military Health System awards ceremony at National Harbor, Maryland, on Feb. 16.  

The Military Health System and AMSUS, the society of federal health professionals, presented a series of awards.

Defense Health Agency Director Promoted to Lieutenant General

Article
2/3/2023
Lt. Gen. Telita Crosland, the Defense Health Agency’s fourth director and first African American DHA director, poses with family and friends after she was promoted to Lieutenant General on Jan. 20, 2023. (Photo by Robert Hammer)

The new Defense Health Agency director pinned on her third star during a ceremony at Fort Myer Memorial Chapel, Virginia, on Jan. 20, 2023.

Historical Perspective: The Critical Role of Disease and Non-Battle Injuries in Soldiers Isolated on Pacific Islands During the Second World War

Article
2/1/2023
SoldiersPacificWWII

This Historical Perspective discusses catastrophic casualties among U.S. and Japanese forces due to failed supply lines during World War II in the Pacific.

NICoE Deputy Director Receives Department of Defense's Highest Civilian Honor

Article
1/27/2023
U.S. Army Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Ronald J. Place  and Dr. Louis French at award ceremony

The work of one of the Department of Defense’s foremost experts on the treatment of traumatic brain injury was recently honored with the department's highest award given to career DOD civilian employees.

DHA Will Serve “Anytime, Anywhere – Always,” Says New Director

Article
1/4/2023
U.S. Army Maj. Gen. (Dr.) Telita Crosland becomes the Defense Health Agency's fourth director at a ceremony held in Falls Church, Virginia, on Jan. 3.

The new director of the Defense Health Agency, U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Telita Crosland accepted her new role as leader of the Department of Defense’s medical agency.

Dedicated Korean War Navy Medic Worked “Feverishly” to Save Lives

Article
9/22/2022
Profile photo of a sailor

U.S. Navy Hospitalman Francis Hammond was awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor for selflessly saving lives and risking his own during the Korean War.

Facility Dogs Play a Vital Role in Recovery for Patients Across the MHS

Article
5/27/2022
Luke is a German Shephard facility dog.

Each dog has his or her own rank, service, and uniform and is inducted in an enlistment or commissioning ceremony. Today, the Facility Dog Program at WRNMMC includes Sully, a yellow Lab who was former President George H.W. Bush’s service dog.

'America’s First Brain Surgeon' Served During Civil War and World War I

Article
5/17/2022
Dr. William Williams Keen Jr was a medical surgeon during the Civil War who afterwards advocated and researched medical advances so the horrors of Civil War-era medicine would not occur again. He also served in the Army during World War I.

The Army’s Dr. William Williams Keen helped to shape military medicine for more than 50 years – from the Civil War to World War I.

Vietnam War Commemoration Presents DHA Director with Commemorative Flag

Article
4/28/2022
U.S. Army Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Ron Place, Defense Health Agency director, receives a commemorative Vietnam War flag from Army Maj. Gen. (Retired) Peter Aylward, The United States of America Vietnam Commemoration director. (Photo: Sonia Clark, MHS Communications)

Lt. Gen. Place receives Vietnam War commemorative flag.

A History of the Combat Helmet and the Quest to Prevent Injuries

Article
4/25/2022
Lt. Gen. George S. Patton and Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt Jr. are pictured here in 1943 wearing the standard M1 helmet, sometimes called the "steel pot." (Photo: 1st Infantry Division Courtesy Photo)

The combat helmet has evolved over time to improve protection against projectiles and shock waves to reduce the risk of fatal blows and traumatic brain injuries.

Ceremony Marks New Name for RIA Health Clinic to Woodson Health Clinic, Honoring World War II Combat Medic

Article
4/21/2022
Stephen Woodson looks at the plaque painting of his father, Staff Sgt. Waverly Woodson Jr., a World War II First U.S. Army combat medic hero, following the unveiling of it during a renaming dedication ceremony at Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois, April 14. The health clinic was renamed Woodson Health Clinic. (Photo: Jon Micheal Connor, ASC Public Affairs)

The Rock Island Arsenal Health Clinic received a new name in honor of a heroic First U.S. Army Soldier in a moving ceremony here in Heritage Hall April 14. The new name is the Woodson Health Clinic in honor of Staff Sgt. Waverly B. Woodson Jr.

Remembering Dr. Alexander Augusta, the U.S. Army’s First Black Doctor

Article
2/25/2022
A photo of Maj. (Dr.) Alexander Augusta among the Seventh Regiment of U.S. Colored Troops where he served as regimental surgeon during the Civil War.

Dr. Alexander Augusta was the first African American to be an Army doctor.

Dentally Unready: Gen. George Washington's Lifetime of Dental Misery

Article
2/3/2022
Visitors to the George Washington’s Mount Vernon estate and museum in Mount Vernon, Virginia, can see George Washington’s only remaining full denture among the collection. They include his own pulled and saved teeth, other human teeth, teeth from cows and horses that were filed to fit, and teeth carved from elephant ivory.

No, George Washington did not have wooden teeth. But he did struggle with dental problems for most of his life.

The British 'Limeys' Were Right: A Short History of Scurvy

Article
1/10/2022
Scurvy, a disease caused by lack of vitamin C, sickened sailors who had no access to fresh food supplies, and killed more than 2 million sailors between the 16th and 18th centuries alone.

How citrus fruits quelled the scourge of scurvy.

Remembering the Military Medical Heroes of Pearl Harbor

Article
12/6/2021
Army Nurse Corps Maj. Annie G. Fox, in the newspaper

On the 80th anniversary of the attacks on Pearl Harbor, MHS remembers the medical heroes that selflessly aided the casualties.

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Last Updated: June 06, 2023
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