“She still has nail polish on”, stated the Lieutenant as the nurses around stopped momentarily, allowing the words to hang there suspended only by a collective unspoken frustration. I can only imagine the day her mother had planned for this 4 year old Iraqi girl. It was supposed to be a festive occasion; one of her relatives was getting married. Surely she could feel the sense of excitement around her, for in these small Iraqi villages everyone is interconnected. It’s unknown whether this... Read More ››

You wake up and don your army combat uniform complete with boots and dog tags; accessorize it with a stethoscope, trauma sheers, and a penlight and feel more pride in that uniform than in hospital scrubs. You have had the opportunity to fire a variety of weapons, ride in helicopters and other military craft, travel to parts of the world you never thought you would see, and overcome obstacles you never thought possible. You somehow find a profound and discrete satisfaction in what you d... Read More ››

You'll know you’re a military nurse when someone asks you what you do, you say "I am an Officer" first, and then you say you are a nurse. You visit the National Mall in DC, and Vietnam veterans at The Wall tell you their stories of how nurses saved their lives, and then they thank you for serving. You have a special section in Arlington National Cemetery dedicated to military nurses who passed before you. You say, "War is hell", and you know it to be true because you lived through it. You ... Read More ››

you are asked what part of the hospital you work at and you say I don't. After the puzzuled look you tell them that you are a nurse on airplanes and the confusion grows even further. I go on to explain that I am a flight nurse for the air force and my job is aeromedical transport. I explain how I have played a vital role in making this the most survivalable wars. I say if you are injured and make it to ER in Balad, Kandahar, or Bagram you have a 98% survival rate. The highest the nation has... Read More ››

Salute to the Angels of Mercy……….. By: Zehra Parvani RN, BScN Nursing Instructor Aga Khan University School of Nursing I am not a military nurse but I heard that they appear like the angels of mercy. This compassion of nursing came in front of the peo... Read More ››

You roll out of bed at O’dark-thirty to go for a quick run before duty. You wear combat boots & camouflage to work. On arriving at ‘the office’ you check the computer and pray your deployed Marine son’s name is NOT on the list of the next Med-Evac of incoming wounded from Iraq or Afghanistan. You proudly help off-load litters of wounded and ill patients from the war zone now at the ER door. You quietly answer questions on the phone from an anxious far-away mother of a wounded soldier who just a... Read More ››

You know you’re a military nurse when…across the trauma bay, ICU, ward or wherever, you see in the eyes of a fellow military nurse, “the look”. It is the quiet confidence of experience. Of having been tested with the most clinically challenging trauma cases in the world, many that defy description and having dealt with them in multiples. And knowing that you and your colleagues will lean on each other, help each other, and provide each wounded service member the best care possible, no matter ... Read More ››

You know you’re a military nurse when you drive a 5 ton across the desert for 4 days and 3 nights in full combat gear. There is very little sleep and the menu is nothing more and nothing less than our favorite MREs. You are truly a military nurse if by the end of the 3rd day you are thinking of which is your favorite meal out of the selection available. You are a true military nurse when showers become available and you comment that 4 minutes is a waste of water and 3 minutes is plenty of tim... Read More ››