Memories of a camp physician over the conditions in the resettlement camp Elsterhorst

"After thorough examination we came to the conclusion that from medical view it cannot be answered, that under presently given conditions the camp Elsterhorst in the present form can be continued as resettlement camp. We regard it rather as our medical obligation to point out that conditions of the camp Elsterhorst are suitable, to endanger the health of many humans.

Many inspections already took place. Us remedy was assured from all sides. What happened so far, is however so little sufficient that thereby those are not eliminated far lack specified down. Internal and outside difficulties lead to the conclusion that a maintenance of the camp, if the shown lack are not eliminated is impossible. This report represents facts, how they are real.

The difficulties begin already with the arrival of a transport. Due to the advanced season is with low temperatures, sometimes under zero to count. The place, in which a transportation course arrives, is been on completely free area. The people are unloaded in the free one and wait, like the experience taught, with their luggage up to six and more hours on their evacuation. Waiting halls or a station with seat opportunities are not available. Rains and snow will expose the resettlers arrived with a transport to colds for hours. The bring along luggage will be durchnaesst.

A contact between those persons, who already went through the quarantine, and who, who are to be supplied to the quarantine only, is not always to avoid. Sometimes thereby the sense of the quarantine in the camp becomes void.

The accommodation in the camp before the Entlausung is an insufficient. Due to the insufficient capacities of the individual institutes for discharger from it is unavoidable that the people long time, particularly in the main warehouse, before which Entlausung must stand in the free one. Also by it cold diseases support is given. Compared with conditions in the summer and at one time as the camp Heimkehrerlager was still and/or only, is now substantial the conditions different. The Heimkehrer sat down from recent and middle classes together and first of all from humans, who were accordingly abgehaertet against weather damage. Now come resettlers, thus families with children, infants and babies, agefrail humans. Partially whole Siechen and blind homes become requarter. Those are humans, who opposed a substantially slighter resistance to the dangers of a unguensti­gen weather can. With the entrance of the cooler and inconsistant season the ghost of the typhus fever emerges. For this reason a perfect functional state of the institutes for discharger from is an absolutely demanded condition. It must be now demanded that covers, bedlinen and also the luggage of a thorough Heissentlausung are submitted, since our judgement a Kaltentlausung is insufficient.

With the Entlausung is available no soap. Showering only with warm water is insufficient. Swim -, clay/tone or liquid soap are unsuitable. A commission of the SMA arranged that fine soap is made available. In order the occurrence of typhus fever, as far as it is human being possible to prevent it is demanded that daily entering in the wohnbaracken the accommodation are examined with lice. For this at least 10 sisters are necessary when saturation the camp. Three are to us only at the disposal. The heating of the wohnbaracken, as well as first of all of the so-called military hospital barracks is unsatisfactory. It becomes still worse, if temperatures will occur under zero.

The entrances to the toilets are strongly dirty. Due to bad soil conditions sea-like puddles stand before it. At night many find the way not to the toilets, but contaminate the environment of the wohnbaracken.

The garbage and liquid manure removal came now into course. Until recently larger heaps of putrid that were appropriate for straw and kitchen wastes before the garbage pits. It will be possible only now to order rat troubles by laying out poison breaking into successfully to stop.

Conditions in the military hospital are untenable. The term "military hospital" exists only the name after. The heating of the military hospital barracks encounters daily allergroess­te difficulties. Useful furnaces are missing in many places. Most still existing furnaces are in need of repair. In two military hospital barracks each sky light is missing. Numerous agefrail and Sieche contaminate daily up to several marks the bedlinen with excrement and urine. For a cleaning of this strongly gotten dirty laundry no laundry and soap are hardly available. Uncleanness is the necessary result. The cooler season will bring a larger number of infections with itself, like flu, angina, Diphtherie and scharlach. Flu patient and other cold diseases in unsatisfactorily heated areas to treat would be irresponsible. Again and again we referred in the central places to it that we must be able, to shift patient in sufficient number after the hospitals. We nearly always fail because of the receptiveness of the hospitals in the periphery the available such as Bautzen, Bischofswerda, Wittichenau and Hoyerswerda. Open Tuberkulosen belongs in the hospital. They cannot be treated here. Daily many hours of precious time with the guidance of telephone calls offense, and in the final result the cases are nevertheless not deployable. We point out that according to the arrangements of the SMA epidemic-suspicious cases are to be hospitalized, thus in hospitals to be accommodated must. The isolating stations are only catching stations, but no treatment stations. Whereupon must be referred to completely particularly energetically. The Ruhr-suspicious cases arrived with that 4,10,46 could be shifted only after 23 days - to 27.10.46 - after Bischofswerda.

The supply of the camp with medicines encounters substantial difficulties. Only it is to be owed to the private initiative of the individual camp physicians that so far from individual places of Saxonia sufficient medicines could be near-created. The financial administration of the landesverwaltung has us communicated that the costs of these medicines are higher around much, as what is entitled to us centrally monthly after the budget.

It is large lack the fact that with size camp, whose capacity is not missing always between 12 - until 15,000 is indicated, a pharmacist, whose work must take over practically the chefarzt with.

The Rueckkehrer (from the Soviet Union) remains within the camp much to for a long time. Transport of 4.10.46 was removed until today only to a smaller part again. That is to be due to the regulation that only in each case 10 %, to which Rueckkehrer the resettler transportation may be attached. Also of the epidemic-technical point of view that is most inappropriate."