Iraq Keeps U.S. Hospital in Germany Busy

[kayell]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20031018/ap_on_re_eu/germany_military_hospital_1

LANDSTUHL, Germany - Major combat in Iraq (news - web sites) has been declared over for nearly six months, but there's been no letup for the staff at the U.S. military's largest overseas hospital.

With American troops under near daily attack in Iraq, workers at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center are still putting in 60-hour weeks caring for wounded and ill soldiers — as well as troops stationed in Afghanistan (news - web sites), the Balkans and Germany.


Since President Bush (news - web sites) declared the major fighting in Iraq over on May 1, two-thirds of the additional staff brought in for the war remain in place, and the average of 44 new patients a day is nearly three times the peacetime level.


"I can't tell the difference between combat and post-combat," said medical director Lt. Col. Richard Jordan, looking over rows of trailers providing temporary housing for the extra 600 doctors and nurses called in to handle casualties from the war.

more

[pippin]

1. read on

"The hospital has treated 1,800 patients so far from the U.S. mission in Afghanistan and more than 7,100 from the Iraq mission.

Since military operations in Iraq started on March 20, 336 U.S. service members have died, according to the Department of Defense (news - web sites). More than 1,500 have been wounded in hostile action. The government says 198 U.S. soldiers have died in Iraq of all causes since Bush's announcement."

Does anyone else wonder if the numbers add up right? :think:

[4dsc]

2. Numbers don't add up

because the DOD is only using wounded in hostile action. Alot more injuries are occurring that are not a result of hostile fire..

But like the spokeman stated:"I can't tell the difference between combat and post-combat

[Barrett808]

3. "Near-daily attack" !?

I just saw a Pentagon news briefing last week that said the average is 22 attacks/day. What they really mean is "near-daily deaths".