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at Ohrdruf, immediately went to work to improve the hospital, and American Army medical officers, impressed by her professional ability, her great energy, and the needs of her hospital, were very generous in their help. These needs were increased when the French Medical Mission doctors left in the latter part of July and took their instruments and equipment with them. Miss de Lagotellerie left about the middle of July, and Miss Deville also returned to her team at Camp Mattenberg at the end of that month.

From the beginning of July to the end of 1945, Dr. van Ackere opened up a laboratory, an operating room, an X-ray and dark room, a children's ward in a nearby barrack, a new dental office, and she started the construction of a pharmacy. In all of these projects, she gave evidence not only of unusual drive and energy, but also of exceptional initiative and ability in obtaining materials and equipment such as X-ray machines, autoclaves, and so on.

The Doctor's relations with the MMLA team were not good at first, apparently because of their unwillingness to cooperate based on their belief that the hospital was a project almost entirely, instead of partly, separate from the camp proper. After some time, cordial relations were established, but Miss Mougnot, the nurse, continued to be somewhat of a problem until her resignation in December.

In August, a French DP, Jean Marchand, was taken on by the hospital as a clerk and general helper. He later became a Class II employee and finally Class I.

Relations with the Military

The relations of the MMLA team with the military were excellent. They were all young, some of them were attractive, and the Director and Acting Deputy were especially charming. In their dual role of UNRRA employees and officers and non-coms in the French Army, they seemed to consider themselves primarily as military personnel and as such seemed1

to


1
Crossed out in the original.
This content transcribes an original report of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA), a separate copy of which is filed in the United Nations Archives (UNA), Reference number: S-1021-0081-05, Title: Monographs - DP-US 20 - Displaced Persons - United States Zone (Germany) - Histories of Individual Camps - History Report No. 30, Report: Baltin Camp in Bettenhausen, Kassel by D. F. McGonigal, Date: April 13, 1945. The UNA grants rights to reproduce with attribution. Additionally, this content is protected as a derivative work under Latvian Copyright Law Chapter 2 § 5 ¶ 3 and as part of a collection under Chapter 3 § 5 ¶ 1.2.
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