Tuberculosis and the Canadian veterans of world war one

Abstract

The thesis examines the neglected question of the disease of tuberculosis and the Canadian veterans of the Great War. It focuses on the programs of medical treatment and the re-establishment efforts of the Dominion government during and shortly after the war. The exsoldiers were the first substantial group in Canada to be cared for in the new therapeutic facility of a sanatorium. Particular attention is directed to two tuberculosis institutions treating the veterans: the Central Alberta Sanatorium in Calgary, Alberta, and the Fort Qu'Appelle Sanatorium in Fort San, Saskatchewan. It was possible to compare the information gained from a detailed examination of the patient medical files at the two sanatoria with the official government reports printed in the Sessional Papers. There were many similarities and several interesting discrepancies which emerged. This study reveals that the federal government was generally able to meet the immediate medical and socio-economic requirements of most returned soldiers; however, for many tuberculous veterans their policies were deficient.