Print this article

E-Mail this article

 

The events of Sept. 11 hold personal significance for Cheryl Knight, Director of Clinical Services for Pediatric Oncology and the Oncology ICU at Children's Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) in Orange, Calif. She received a phone call notifying her that, as member of the Air Force Nurse Reserve Corps, she was required to report for duty.

"Our unit was put on standby the night of Sept. 11. I had to report to March Air Force Base near San Bernardino, where I spent the next six days waiting to be sent to New York City." Knight's unit never did fly to the East Coast, but the experience was memorable nonetheless.

"It was my first time being called up in seven years in the Air Force Reserve," said Knight, who has been a nurse for 21 years. Even though she didn't leave her home state, she said it the call-up affected her significantly. "Being activated had a big impact on my family and me. It's scary. It's hard for the families when you're activated." Knight's husband and children, the youngest of whom is 10, didn't know when she left when they would see her again.

Receiving her mobilization orders wasn't a complete surprise, Knight said. "When the military stuff starts, we've been told to be prepared to be called. We're trained to be prepared emotionally and physically-legal stuff, family preparation."

During her six days on standby, Knight and the 30 members of her unit prepared for possible activation to the deserts of Afghanistan, studied pertinent information and "hung out." In her reserve role as a flight nurse, Knight is responsible for transportation of patients, providing any kind of medical care needed while in flight. Her training, which typically takes one weekend each month and a two-week stint annually, has comprised mock drills as well as actual medical flights when they're available. It's quite a change from her role at CHOC. When she was called to active duty, she said other nurses were able to fill in her job with a minimum of difficulty. "It didn't cause much trouble in my unit. There are others ready to take on my work." Although there are other military reservists also working at CHOC, Knight says she is the sole nurse. "Being called up isn't going to impact the hospital much," she said.