Furlough Scheme

At the end of April a furlough scheme for medical officers was commenced and four officers left for New Zealand or the United Kingdom; they included Lieutenant-Colonel J. K. Elliott, who was succeeded in the command of 4 Field Ambulance by Lieutenant-Colonel F. B. Edmundson. Medical officers had been excluded from the general 2 NZEF furlough scheme because of the shortage of medical officers in the force and the difficulty experienced in arranging for replacement from New Zealand. Officers of the First Echelon had not been granted leave to New Zealand up to this period, over four years since their departure overseas.