CHAPTER I
The Medical Command Structure
Formal U.S. military assistance to the
Republic of Vietnam may be traced to the signing of the Pentalateral Agreement
in 1950, a multinational Mutual Defense AssistanceTreaty for Indochina, The,
American contribution to the defense of the Southeast Asian sovereignties was
nominal for several years thereafter, as reflected by the fact that at no time
during the next decade did U.S. military personnel in Vietnam number more than
1,000, Most of the U.S. support effort took the form of materiel and supplies,
distributed to the South Vietnamese government through MAAGV (Military
Assistance Advisory Group, Vietnam), a small logistics and training
organization. However, in November 1961, mounting support by North Vietnam of
guerrilla activities in the South led President John F. Kennedy to conclude
that, if the South Vietnamese democracy were to be preserved, a much larger
commitment of U.S. military personnel in support of the RVNAF (Republic, of
Vietnam Arnied Forces) would be required.
The consequences of the President's
decision were immediately manifest. By the end of 1961, the number of U.S.
military personnel in Vietnam had quadrupled. Slightly more than 4,000 men were
assigned as military advisers to the RVNAF, to staff officers at MAAGV
headquarters, or to a rapidly increasing number of support units. With the
arrival of additional Special Forces and logistical detachments in the first 2
in months of 1962, the magnitude of the U.S. military role in Vietnam became
clear. To provide centralized command and control for these growing combat
advisory and support forces, USMACV (U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam),
a joint command under CINCPAC (Commander in Chief, Pacific), was officially
established on 8 February 1962. Named as the first COMUSMACV (Commander, U.S.
Military Assistance Command, Vietnam) was Lieutenant General Paul D. Harkins,
whose grade was indicative, of the strength of the, expanding American
commitment.
Closely related to the buildup of
American combat, combat advisory, and support forces was the development of the
U.S. medical service structure in Vietnam. Based on anticipated troop lists,
initial medical support requirements were set in December 1961, shortly after
President Kennedy's decision to increase the level of American support to the
RVNAF. These requirements included one field hospital of 100-bed
