Under the Order of Malta flag, eleven doctors from the Military Corps of the Order of Malta Italian Association (ACISMOM) will take part in peace missions outside Italy, with more to follow.
The Italian Defence Ministry General Staff has expressed its approval of ACISMOM’s participation in humanitarian and peace keeping missions in regions in crisis.
The group will undergo highly focused training, and will offer specialised medical care to civilian populations, staying at least 45 days in the stricken areas. The Operative Command of the Italian Inter-Forces Summit (COI) provided a health cover programme similar to that for the Armed Forces, mapping out the required specialisations and tasks for each medical volunteer.
BACKGROUND
January 1877: Military Corps of the Order of Malta Italian Association (ACISMOM) founded to provide medical assistance to the sick and wounded in warfare. Scope since increased, to offer help to the army in times of warfare and cases of public disasters.
December 1908: Calabro-Siculo earthquake a testing ground for the Military Corps, which used all its resources to good effect, to assist the wounded.
1909: Military Corps became the Special Corps of the Italian Army.
1911-12: during war with Libya, Corps provided with the ship Regina Margherita which it transformed into a floating hospital.
First World War: Corps ran four hospital trains, eight casualty sites, a field hospital, and a territorial hospital in Rome. The four trains transported 448,000 nurses from the various fronts to the territorial hospitals distributed around the country, covering over 560,000km on a total of 641 journeys. Over 87,000 operations, both military and civil, carried out at the eight casualty sites.
Second World War: Corps again mobilised its own divisions and once more served alongside the Military Medical Corps. Three more hospital trains in service, undertaking many long journeys – to Germany, Russia, Albania, Croatia and France. Throughout the conflict, ACISMOM ran 19 hospitals across the country.
Post Second World War: Corps interventions in many disaster-stricken situations, offering assistance and support to the suffering civilian population.
