If you were struck in the abdomen or chest the wound would usually be fatal.

New recruits were supposed to be given a through examination on enlistment: Part of the US Army Regulations stated “In passing a recruit the medical officer is to examine him stripped, to see he has free use of all his limbs; that his chest is ample; that his vision, hearing and speech are perfect; that he has no tumours or ulcerated or cicatrized legs; no rupture or chronic condition.” But some physicians just march the men past in rows and provided they could walk  they were allowed in the army. Examinations like this is the main reason that over 800 women enrolled as soldiers. 

Another problem amongst recruits, especially those from farming or village backgrounds, was that they had never contracted the normal childhood illnesses like measles, chicken pox etc. When they came into contact with thousands of other men at the training camps, these diseases would often become epidemics and entire regiments could be out of action for weeks.  The early camp that were set up suffered a lot from malaria, camp fever and dysentery due to the men drinking contaminated water, usually cased by digging the latrines to close to a water supply or to close to the sleeping area. Food not cooked properly, a bad diet and a lack of basic hygiene also contributed to soldiers sickness.  

 Of all the medicines prescribed during the Civil War only 6 had any therapeutic value these were:

Narcotics, Opium and Morphine, which were powerful analgesics and without doubt relieved the suffering of countless soldiers. (The most effective way of administering this would have been by injection, but unfortunately the hypodermic syringe was in short supply, there being only 11 in the US at the start of the conflict. The usual method was to sprinkle the drug directly onto the wound or orally. During the war the Union Army went through 2.8 million ounces of tincture of Opium or Opium powder and almost half a million Opium pills).

Next was the Anaesthetics, ether and chloroform these where administered using a cone of cloth were the liquid was  soaked  onto  the cloth. The cloth  was  then  placed over the mouth and nose of the patient until he fell asleep when it was removed and the patient allowed to breath air, if he began to wake the mask was replaced. (These general anaesthetics was used by both sides during the war. The Union records document the use of anaesthesia in over 80,000 cases 76% of these chloroform either 14% and the rest a mixture of both).

Bromine was used as a treatment of hospital gangrene, more so in the latter stages of the war. It was initially sprayed into the air to combat ‘effluvia’ bad air but was later used as a topical antiseptic.

Quinine had been used for the treatment of Malaria for hundreds of years before the Civil War its was continually used during the war as a cure for all types of fever (Over 2 million ounces of Quinine products were produced by the North during the war.)

Of the other medicines used during the war most did nothing but many caused irreversible harm or even death. After the war there was several cases of  Senile Dementia caused by the heavy metals used in the medicines. There were also many cases of morphine and opium addiction. 

After the initial treatment in a field hospital a soldier would be transported to the rear to a general hospital usually in the larger cities, they were transported in hospital ships, often converted river boats, or by train with carriages fitted with bunk beds.  Here they would receive better nursing care and better rations. A hospital of 1,000 beds would have a staff of approximately 150 to look after the men, some of the staff would be recruited from patients at the later stages of convalescents, these were often untrained and rapidly changed.