The military medical school of Mexico: a tradition of excellence

It is a historical fact that warfare and surgery have been linked together as far back as military history has been recorded. In the 18th century, the tendency of most armies to dismiss their medical services at the end of every major conflict resulted in higher mortality at the beginning of the next war. This became evident in the French and British Armies during the Battle of Waterloo. These countries went to great efforts to mobilize their civilian reserve physicians, only to discover that more than half of the medical personnel declined to serve. The scarcity of physicians and the inexperience of those caring for the wounded resulted in a high casualty rate. The current armed conflicts throughout the world with their high number of victims are living evidence of the need for preparedness of the military medical personnel. In this article, we review the systems of military medical education in several countries, and offer the example of the Escuela Medico Militar (Military Medical School) of Mexico, a prestigious source of military medical physicians for the Mexican armed forces.