- Email: [email protected]
New Duties for Dentists in Civilian Defense Plan
M
id - M o n t h l y
WAR SERVICE COMMITTEE
D e fin e P r e s e n t S ta tu s
O f D e n t a l C o m m is s io n s T h e procedure to be followed by den tists who have been placed in Class i-A and whose induction is imminent has been defined in a statement issued on September 30 by the W ar M anpow er Commission. T h e statement has been released to all state chairman by the D i recting Board o f the Procurement and Assignment Service. T h e statement fol lows : T here will be no recruiting of dentists for th e A rm y until fu rth er notice. O n August 4 , 1942 , the follow ing release from N ational H ead q u arters of th e Selective Service System w as sent to local Selective Service Boards: “ 1 . No deferment for recruiting.— R egis trants applying fo r a com m ission o r for en listm ent in the arm ed forces have heretofore been considered for deferm ent o r postpone m ent of induction pending final action on th eir applications. T h a t procedure is discon tinued. H ereafter, registrants otherwise av ail able for m ilitary service shall n o t be con sidered for deferm ent or postponem ent of induction by reason of having m ad e ap p lica tion for a com m ission or fo r enlistm ent. “ 2. Deferments and postponements pre viously granted.— W here such deferm ents or postponem ents have been granted before A ugust 20, 1942 , they shall be continued for the period for w hich granted even though the period of such deferm ents or postponem ents m ay extend beyond th a t date. “ 3 . Notice of entry into service.— T h e ' A rm y, N avy, M arin e C orps an d C oast G u ard have been requested, w henever a registrant is com m issioned or enlisted by them , im m e diately to notify th e registrant’s local b o ard .” O n S eptem ber 9 , 1942 , th e follow ing lette r was sent to the D irector, N atio n al H e a d quarters, Selective Service System, from the Office of Surgeon G eneral of the A rm y.
I ssue
!933
“T h e p ro curem en t objective for den tal of ficers, A rm y of th e U n ite d States, has been reached, an d the authorized allo tm en t for the period ending D ecem ber 3 1 , 1942 is alm ost filled. T h e M edical Officers R ecru it ing Boards have been given until Septem ber 15 , 1942 to process th e unfinished app lica tions. U n til fu rth e r notice, only those den
tists classified in Class i-A by their local boards and whose induction into the military establishment is imminent will be processed for appointment.” In view of this situation, it is im perative for every d en tist w ho is placed in Class i-A to com m unicate w ith his Selective Service B oard to determ ine how soon he will be in ducted. If in duction is im m inent, he should obtain a le tte r from his local Selective S er vice B oard stating th a t his induction is immi nent. H e should th e n send this le tte r w ith a request for ap p licatio n to th e Office of the Surgeon G eneral asking for as rap id return of applicatio n as possible. T h e Office of th e Surgeon G eneral has stated th a t w hen the com pleted application and th e re p o rt on the physical exam ination have been received, they w ill be processed as rap id ly as possible. T h e dentist, if q u al ified, w ill be g ran te d a commission w ithin a relatively sh o rt tim e. T h e S tate C h airm an for P rocurem ent and A ssignment Service should m ake every effort to have dentists w ho have been placed in Class i-A deferred, if they are essential, since there is a shortage of dentists. If, however, a dentist is available for m ilitary duty, the state chairm an should do everything possible to assist in expediting the above procedures, so th a t th e d en tist m ay be com m issioned b e fore induction.
'In a second statement from the W ar M anpower Commission, the Directing Board of the Procurement and Assign ment Service outlined the order of selec tion of dentists for service in the Army of the U nited States. This statement, which was sent to all state chairmen Oh September 30, follows : Dependency Categories.— Selective Service Boards are follow ing th e general rule of plac ing only those m en in Class i-A w ho fall in the regularly d eterm ined dependency cate gories so th a t single m en w ithout dependents
1934
T h e J o u r n a l o f t h e A m e r ic a n D e n t a l A s s o c ia t io n
w ill be taken first, th en through the various categories as listed in Selective Service R e lease N o. 279 ,* w hich w as sent to you on A ugust 26 . T hese classifications w ill be adhered to rigidly by Selective Service. S tate chairm en should a tte m p t to arrange th eir lists-o f available dentists in these v a rious dependency categories so th a t they m ay anticip ate those m ost a p t to be placed next in C lass i-A . Limited. Service.— Commissions w ill no longer be g ran ted to dentists in th e D en tal C orps of the U n ite d States A rm y for lim ited service. I f m en placed in Class i-A are n o t accepted fo r commission, then every effort should be m ade to defer them for civilian service. I t will# be necessary to relocate some dentists, and if they are declared avail able by Selective Service, b u t n o t physically acceptable for the D ental C orps of the U n ited S tates A rm y, then they m ig h t be re located in a com m unity w here they w ill be essential. T his is in accord w ith a (previous) release to S tate D irectors of Selective Service from th e N ational H ead q u arters of th e Se lective Service System. “W e a re inform ed by the Office of the Surgeon G eneral th a t th e physicians o r den tists listed below have been rejected for com missions in the A rm y of th e U n ited States fo r th e reasons given. “ I t is n oted th a t these (physicians) or dentists have volunteered their services and have been rejected, through no fau lt of theirs. I t is the opinion of this h eadquarters th a t d u ly licensed physicians o r dentists who cannot be used by th e arm ed forces in their professional capacity, w hen th eir services are so b ad ly n eeded by the civilian population, should be considered for occupational classi
fication.” *T he classifications: ( 1 ) single men w ith no dependents; ( 2 ) single men who do not con tribute to the w ar effort, b u t who do have de pendents; ( 3 ) single men w ith dependents and who contribute to the w ar effort; ( 4 ) m arried m en w ho are not engaged in the w ar effort, b u t who m aintain a bona fide family relation ship w ith a wife only; ( 6 ) m arried men who are not engaged in the w ar effort and who m aintain a bona fide family relationship w ith wife and children or children only; ( 7 ) m ar ried men who are engaged in the w ar effort and w ho m aintain a bona fide fam ily relation ship w ith wife and children or children only.
Dental Internships.— T h e follow ing is an ex cerp t from a le tte r fro m the N atio n al H e a d q u arters of th e Selective Service System, d a te d A ugust 2 1 , 1942 . “T h is H ead q u arters believes th a t dental internes should receive th e sam e considera tion fo r deferm ent as m edical interns; i.e., d eferm en t as m en engaged in an essential profession.” N e w D u tie s f o r D e n tis ts In C i v i l i a n D e f e n s e P l a n
Units to help care for casualties and other patients who m ay have to be moved in case of enemy attack are nowbeing organized, according to a recent announcement by James M . Landis, di rector of the Office of Civilian Defense. T h e units will be composed of a dental surgeon, fifteen physicians and specialists in internal medicine, surgery, pathology and radiology. T h e units are being established in selected medical schools and hospitals in the coastal states. Invi tations to form such units as part of the joint program of the M edical Division of the Office of Civilian Defense and the Public H ealth Service for wartime pro tection of the civilian population were issued by the Surgeon General of the U nited States Public H ealth Service. A ll physicians of the unit w ill receive commissions in the U . S. Public Health Service Reserve, but will be called to active duty only if hospital patients in their own regions must be moved to Emergency Base Hospitals or if the civilian population is moved because of enemy action. Unless such an urgent need arises, they w ill remain on an in active status for the duration of the war. Co l o r a d o . —
A plan for increased par ticipation by dentists in the work of civilian defense has been developed by the Colorado State Dental Association. Early in July, the plan was initiated through the efforts of R alph L. Christy, president of the Colorado State Dental
M
id - M o n t h l y
Association, and Robert H. M cBride, president of the Denver Dental Associa tion. T h e cooperation of official medical groups was sought in teaching dentists to aid in certain phases of medical work associated with civilian defense. In August, lectures were given on the handling of shock cases and on the treat ment of open wounds. Actual demon strations will supplement these lectures at a later date. During September, seventy-nine dentists attended lectures on anesthetics best suited to emergency work. A fter these classes, five or six den tists were assigned to a hospital for one morning a week to observe the technic of anesthesia administration. Later, the dentists will receive further training by administering the anesthetic under the direction of the lecturer and hospital staff. Classes are now being organized in m axillofacial surgery, oral surgery, fractures of facial bones, serology, the control of hemorrhage and other sub jects. W hile emphasizing that this training is for use in emergency only, Dr. Christy urged “ every locality, especially where there are m ilitary centers, and all coastal and border areas to carry out this pro gram or a similar one.” “ L et us hope,” he continued, “ that the other states will find that same w ill ingness and cooperation that we did in their state m edical societies so that den tists all over the United States can help the medical profession care for civilians in case of emergency.”
Mi c h i g a n , —
In M ichigan, another pro gram is being developed by the Genesee County Dental Society to aid in the med ical work associated with civilian defense. Genesee County, which includes the city of Flint, has already had forty-one physi cians and seven dentists called to the colors. Sixteen other dentists are now awaiting commissions. As a result of this increasing shortage in professional per
I ssu e
1935
sonnel, the Genesee M edical Society asked sixteen members of the Genesee County D ental Society to take extensive training in such subjects as intravenous feeding, obtaining blood samples, intra muscular injections, intravenous injec tions and obtaining blood plasma. T h e training is now well under way and eight dentists have qualified for ob taining plasma for the blood bank, intra venous injection and feeding. Four more are now in training. Tw elve dentists are also giving injections for the venereal diseases and all draft boards are being served by dentists who take blood speci mens. By the end of the year, it is ex pected that all sixteen of the dentists will be qualified for all types of work to be undertaken by the dental staff. T h e program has been developed un der the direction of Charles H. Matson, o f Flint, president of the Genesee County Dental Society. In commenting upon the plan, W . P. Dearing, acting chief medical officer of the Office of Civilian Defense, wrote to the W ar Service Com mittee that “ Dr. M atson’s letter gives a most interesting example of the w ay in which dentists m ay help relieve the growing shortage of physicians and den tists.” H e continues: “ W e shall try to bring before the medical profession and the local defense councils the splendid efforts of the Flint dentists.” Dentists in other parts of the country have assumed various posts in civilian defense organizations. State and local dental societies have been cooperating w ith local authorities and, in many cases, have sponsored courses to train members in civilian defense work. T h e M ichigan and Colorado programs indicate that positions of great useful ness can be found for dentists in ci vilian defense work by cooperation with the medical profession and by estab lishing intensive courses for training in special subjects. O ther states are ex pected to develop similar programs in the future.
id - M o n t h l y
WAR SERVICE COMMITTEE
D e fin e P r e s e n t S ta tu s
O f D e n t a l C o m m is s io n s T h e procedure to be followed by den tists who have been placed in Class i-A and whose induction is imminent has been defined in a statement issued on September 30 by the W ar M anpow er Commission. T h e statement has been released to all state chairman by the D i recting Board o f the Procurement and Assignment Service. T h e statement fol lows : T here will be no recruiting of dentists for th e A rm y until fu rth er notice. O n August 4 , 1942 , the follow ing release from N ational H ead q u arters of th e Selective Service System w as sent to local Selective Service Boards: “ 1 . No deferment for recruiting.— R egis trants applying fo r a com m ission o r for en listm ent in the arm ed forces have heretofore been considered for deferm ent o r postpone m ent of induction pending final action on th eir applications. T h a t procedure is discon tinued. H ereafter, registrants otherwise av ail able for m ilitary service shall n o t be con sidered for deferm ent or postponem ent of induction by reason of having m ad e ap p lica tion for a com m ission or fo r enlistm ent. “ 2. Deferments and postponements pre viously granted.— W here such deferm ents or postponem ents have been granted before A ugust 20, 1942 , they shall be continued for the period for w hich granted even though the period of such deferm ents or postponem ents m ay extend beyond th a t date. “ 3 . Notice of entry into service.— T h e ' A rm y, N avy, M arin e C orps an d C oast G u ard have been requested, w henever a registrant is com m issioned or enlisted by them , im m e diately to notify th e registrant’s local b o ard .” O n S eptem ber 9 , 1942 , th e follow ing lette r was sent to the D irector, N atio n al H e a d quarters, Selective Service System, from the Office of Surgeon G eneral of the A rm y.
I ssue
!933
“T h e p ro curem en t objective for den tal of ficers, A rm y of th e U n ite d States, has been reached, an d the authorized allo tm en t for the period ending D ecem ber 3 1 , 1942 is alm ost filled. T h e M edical Officers R ecru it ing Boards have been given until Septem ber 15 , 1942 to process th e unfinished app lica tions. U n til fu rth e r notice, only those den
tists classified in Class i-A by their local boards and whose induction into the military establishment is imminent will be processed for appointment.” In view of this situation, it is im perative for every d en tist w ho is placed in Class i-A to com m unicate w ith his Selective Service B oard to determ ine how soon he will be in ducted. If in duction is im m inent, he should obtain a le tte r from his local Selective S er vice B oard stating th a t his induction is immi nent. H e should th e n send this le tte r w ith a request for ap p licatio n to th e Office of the Surgeon G eneral asking for as rap id return of applicatio n as possible. T h e Office of th e Surgeon G eneral has stated th a t w hen the com pleted application and th e re p o rt on the physical exam ination have been received, they w ill be processed as rap id ly as possible. T h e dentist, if q u al ified, w ill be g ran te d a commission w ithin a relatively sh o rt tim e. T h e S tate C h airm an for P rocurem ent and A ssignment Service should m ake every effort to have dentists w ho have been placed in Class i-A deferred, if they are essential, since there is a shortage of dentists. If, however, a dentist is available for m ilitary duty, the state chairm an should do everything possible to assist in expediting the above procedures, so th a t th e d en tist m ay be com m issioned b e fore induction.
'In a second statement from the W ar M anpower Commission, the Directing Board of the Procurement and Assign ment Service outlined the order of selec tion of dentists for service in the Army of the U nited States. This statement, which was sent to all state chairmen Oh September 30, follows : Dependency Categories.— Selective Service Boards are follow ing th e general rule of plac ing only those m en in Class i-A w ho fall in the regularly d eterm ined dependency cate gories so th a t single m en w ithout dependents
1934
T h e J o u r n a l o f t h e A m e r ic a n D e n t a l A s s o c ia t io n
w ill be taken first, th en through the various categories as listed in Selective Service R e lease N o. 279 ,* w hich w as sent to you on A ugust 26 . T hese classifications w ill be adhered to rigidly by Selective Service. S tate chairm en should a tte m p t to arrange th eir lists-o f available dentists in these v a rious dependency categories so th a t they m ay anticip ate those m ost a p t to be placed next in C lass i-A . Limited. Service.— Commissions w ill no longer be g ran ted to dentists in th e D en tal C orps of the U n ite d States A rm y for lim ited service. I f m en placed in Class i-A are n o t accepted fo r commission, then every effort should be m ade to defer them for civilian service. I t will# be necessary to relocate some dentists, and if they are declared avail able by Selective Service, b u t n o t physically acceptable for the D ental C orps of the U n ited S tates A rm y, then they m ig h t be re located in a com m unity w here they w ill be essential. T his is in accord w ith a (previous) release to S tate D irectors of Selective Service from th e N ational H ead q u arters of th e Se lective Service System. “W e a re inform ed by the Office of the Surgeon G eneral th a t th e physicians o r den tists listed below have been rejected for com missions in the A rm y of th e U n ited States fo r th e reasons given. “ I t is n oted th a t these (physicians) or dentists have volunteered their services and have been rejected, through no fau lt of theirs. I t is the opinion of this h eadquarters th a t d u ly licensed physicians o r dentists who cannot be used by th e arm ed forces in their professional capacity, w hen th eir services are so b ad ly n eeded by the civilian population, should be considered for occupational classi
fication.” *T he classifications: ( 1 ) single men w ith no dependents; ( 2 ) single men who do not con tribute to the w ar effort, b u t who do have de pendents; ( 3 ) single men w ith dependents and who contribute to the w ar effort; ( 4 ) m arried m en w ho are not engaged in the w ar effort, b u t who m aintain a bona fide family relation ship w ith a wife only; ( 6 ) m arried men who are not engaged in the w ar effort and who m aintain a bona fide family relationship w ith wife and children or children only; ( 7 ) m ar ried men who are engaged in the w ar effort and w ho m aintain a bona fide fam ily relation ship w ith wife and children or children only.
Dental Internships.— T h e follow ing is an ex cerp t from a le tte r fro m the N atio n al H e a d q u arters of th e Selective Service System, d a te d A ugust 2 1 , 1942 . “T h is H ead q u arters believes th a t dental internes should receive th e sam e considera tion fo r deferm ent as m edical interns; i.e., d eferm en t as m en engaged in an essential profession.” N e w D u tie s f o r D e n tis ts In C i v i l i a n D e f e n s e P l a n
Units to help care for casualties and other patients who m ay have to be moved in case of enemy attack are nowbeing organized, according to a recent announcement by James M . Landis, di rector of the Office of Civilian Defense. T h e units will be composed of a dental surgeon, fifteen physicians and specialists in internal medicine, surgery, pathology and radiology. T h e units are being established in selected medical schools and hospitals in the coastal states. Invi tations to form such units as part of the joint program of the M edical Division of the Office of Civilian Defense and the Public H ealth Service for wartime pro tection of the civilian population were issued by the Surgeon General of the U nited States Public H ealth Service. A ll physicians of the unit w ill receive commissions in the U . S. Public Health Service Reserve, but will be called to active duty only if hospital patients in their own regions must be moved to Emergency Base Hospitals or if the civilian population is moved because of enemy action. Unless such an urgent need arises, they w ill remain on an in active status for the duration of the war. Co l o r a d o . —
A plan for increased par ticipation by dentists in the work of civilian defense has been developed by the Colorado State Dental Association. Early in July, the plan was initiated through the efforts of R alph L. Christy, president of the Colorado State Dental
M
id - M o n t h l y
Association, and Robert H. M cBride, president of the Denver Dental Associa tion. T h e cooperation of official medical groups was sought in teaching dentists to aid in certain phases of medical work associated with civilian defense. In August, lectures were given on the handling of shock cases and on the treat ment of open wounds. Actual demon strations will supplement these lectures at a later date. During September, seventy-nine dentists attended lectures on anesthetics best suited to emergency work. A fter these classes, five or six den tists were assigned to a hospital for one morning a week to observe the technic of anesthesia administration. Later, the dentists will receive further training by administering the anesthetic under the direction of the lecturer and hospital staff. Classes are now being organized in m axillofacial surgery, oral surgery, fractures of facial bones, serology, the control of hemorrhage and other sub jects. W hile emphasizing that this training is for use in emergency only, Dr. Christy urged “ every locality, especially where there are m ilitary centers, and all coastal and border areas to carry out this pro gram or a similar one.” “ L et us hope,” he continued, “ that the other states will find that same w ill ingness and cooperation that we did in their state m edical societies so that den tists all over the United States can help the medical profession care for civilians in case of emergency.”
Mi c h i g a n , —
In M ichigan, another pro gram is being developed by the Genesee County Dental Society to aid in the med ical work associated with civilian defense. Genesee County, which includes the city of Flint, has already had forty-one physi cians and seven dentists called to the colors. Sixteen other dentists are now awaiting commissions. As a result of this increasing shortage in professional per
I ssu e
1935
sonnel, the Genesee M edical Society asked sixteen members of the Genesee County D ental Society to take extensive training in such subjects as intravenous feeding, obtaining blood samples, intra muscular injections, intravenous injec tions and obtaining blood plasma. T h e training is now well under way and eight dentists have qualified for ob taining plasma for the blood bank, intra venous injection and feeding. Four more are now in training. Tw elve dentists are also giving injections for the venereal diseases and all draft boards are being served by dentists who take blood speci mens. By the end of the year, it is ex pected that all sixteen of the dentists will be qualified for all types of work to be undertaken by the dental staff. T h e program has been developed un der the direction of Charles H. Matson, o f Flint, president of the Genesee County Dental Society. In commenting upon the plan, W . P. Dearing, acting chief medical officer of the Office of Civilian Defense, wrote to the W ar Service Com mittee that “ Dr. M atson’s letter gives a most interesting example of the w ay in which dentists m ay help relieve the growing shortage of physicians and den tists.” H e continues: “ W e shall try to bring before the medical profession and the local defense councils the splendid efforts of the Flint dentists.” Dentists in other parts of the country have assumed various posts in civilian defense organizations. State and local dental societies have been cooperating w ith local authorities and, in many cases, have sponsored courses to train members in civilian defense work. T h e M ichigan and Colorado programs indicate that positions of great useful ness can be found for dentists in ci vilian defense work by cooperation with the medical profession and by estab lishing intensive courses for training in special subjects. O ther states are ex pected to develop similar programs in the future.