The Soviet Union became the only country where female medics formed the backbone of the military medical service during World War II. The article shows how the state managed to mobilize and train millions of women — from doctors to orderlies — for work at the front and in hospitals. The organizational mechanisms were mass conscription through the Komsomol, accelerated training in the Red Cross system, and the introduction of strict mobilization quotas. The result was not only the technical ability to treat the wounded, but also the implementation of a staged evacuation system and mass blood donation, which made it possible to return 72% of the wounded — more than 17 million people — to duty. However, the flip side of this feat was the colossal losses among the female medics themselves (210 thousand people). Based on memoir evidence, the article also reveals the everyday hardships and gender aspects of service that remained outside the official historiography for a long time [1–7].
Keywords: female medics, mobilization, Great Patriotic War, staged treatment, blood donation, sanitary losses, nurses.