Operation Desert Care
American nurses fulfill their medical mission to troops, while others provide humanitarian relief

By Linda Childers
August 28, 2003

The nurses gently lifted the young soldier onto the airplane, being careful not to aggravate the gunshot wound in his leg. Capt. Jeanette Hess, RN, a registered respiratory therapist, one of the Air Force reservists tending to the soldier, was struck by his youthful appearance.

He seemed barely old enough to be out of high school, and yet here he was thousands of miles from home, serving his country in the war on Iraq. Someone's son, she thought, as she squeezed his hand reassuringly.

Hess is one of many American nurses who, in recent months, have traveled to Iraq offering their nursing expertise within a war-ravaged country.

Hess and her colleague, Maj. Cathleen Madge, MSN, RN, work at the University of California, Davis Medical Center. Both have served in the Air Force Reserve, based at nearby Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, Calif., for many years.

The two arrived in Iraq in late March and returned home in early May. Other Air Force Reserve nurses remain overseas supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

"We fly on many operational missions during peacetime," Madge said, "but this was our first wartime mission."

Arriving in Kuwait dressed in helmets and body armor, carrying weapons and prepared for the possibility of chemical attacks was an experience far different from their daily routines at UC Davis, where Madge works as the house supervisor and Hess as an assistant nurse manager in pulmonary services.

In Iraq, the two nurses served as an integral part of Air Force flight crews, flying on operational rescue missions to care for and transport wounded troops.

"It was a very sobering experience," Hess said. "I remember caravans of military personnel heading north one morning, and hoping against hope that none of them would return injured."

The Air Force Reserve provides 80 percent to 90 percent of all air evacuation missions worldwide. In Iraq, medical flight crews were responsible for transporting injured soldiers to an Army hospital in Kuwait.

Depending on the extent of their injuries, some of the wounded were transferred to a medical facility in Europe.

Ready and willing

"Although we had never served during a war, the excellent training we received over the years in the Air Force Reserve completely prepared us for the experience," Madge said.

Flying on C-130 aircrafts that carried between 15 and 20 patients, Madge and Hess found themselves caring for soldiers with a variety of injuries sustained from gunshots, as well as broken bones, abdominal injuries and shrapnel wounds.

"We saw some incredibly brave soldiers," Hess said. "Being given the opportunity to care for the troops is the highest honor I've received in all my years of nursing."

For Navy Cmdr. Jim Fowler, MSN, RN, Operation Iraqi Freedom marked his third deployment during wartime. Fowler, who works as the nurse manager/officer-in-charge of the Branch Medical Clinic at Corry Field in Pensacola, Fla., also served in Operation Desert Storm and Operation Desert Shield.

Fowler and 300 of his colleagues departed March 9 from Fleet Hospital Pensacola, and returned home June 9 to a heroes' welcome by more than 450 family members and staff.

A 14-year veteran of the Navy, Fowler is among the 30 percent of men employed as a military nurse.

In Iraq, Fowler served as a clinical specialist for three months, providing training to other military personnel at a 116-bed Expeditionary Medical Facility.

The facility, which covered nine acres in the desert of Southern Iraq, was manned by medical/surgical and support personnel from Navy medical facilities across the United States.

There, Fowler and his colleagues cared for 580 patients, both American troops and Iraqi soldiers, in temperatures that often climbed well above the 100-degree mark.

"As medical professionals, we administered the same level of care to both troops," Fowler said. "We had Iraqi soldiers comment that their perceptions of Americans had changed after meeting the nurses and receiving such wonderful care. They saw firsthand we weren't the evil Americans they had been led to believe."

In many cases, the level of care administered exceeded Iraqi standards.

"In the U.S., we are trained to do everything possible to save a soldier's limbs, but in Iraq, the practice is to amputate the injured limb," Fowler said. "I think our standard of care surprised many of the Iraqi civilians and soldiers."

A veteran of war, Fowler still found himself reacting to working in the middle of a combat zone.

"When you hear the Scud missiles and sirens going off and you find yourself running for a bunker with 10 people jumping on top of you, you definitely consider your own mortality," he said. "It's not something you get immune to over time."

Although President Bush officially declared that major combat operations in Iraq had ended May 1, many U.S. military and medical personnel are still based in Iraq. According to the Pentagon, more than 140,000 troops remained in Iraq as of August.

Hess and Madge continue to be on active duty status and are prepared to return to Iraq.

"As long as sick and wounded soldiers continue to be [evacucated by air] out of Iraq, military nurses will also be present to provide them with medical care," Madge said.

Welcome relief

Although many nurses continue to serve the medical needs of our troops, others work to provide humanitarian aid to the citizens of Iraq.

Jackie Gust, RN, was on the first team of medical personnel to arrive in April on a humanitarian mission with colleagues from Northwest Medical Teams International, based in Portland, Ore.

Nongovernmental organizations such as Northwest Medical Teams and the International Red Cross are continuing to provide relief to Iraqi citizens. Under the direction of the Ministry of Health in Iraq, Gust and other medical volunteers were invited to help villagers in Gwer.

Gust, a public health nurse, is a veteran of medical relief missions. In addition to her volunteer work with Northwest Medical Teams, she is director of international projects for Challenge Ministries International, a charitable organization that offers humanitarian medical relief.

"When you travel on a medical mission, you need to go without any preconceived ideas of what to expect," Gust said. "To be successful, you need to stay flexible, have a pioneering spirit and be prepared to handle any crisis that comes your way."

Arriving in Iraq with more than $80,000 worth of critically needed antibiotics, surgical kits, bandages, syringes and IV supplies, Gust and her colleagues provided care to villagers in northern Iraq.

Northwest Medical Teams is one of only five U.S. agencies to receive a grant from the U.S. Department of State for continuing work in northern Iraq.

The medical team received a warm welcome from families living in Iraq's rural villages who don't have access to adequate health care. "We treated a lot of patients with hypertension, thyroid goiters and gynecological problems," Gust said.

The team came to Iraq prepared for the worst.

Because water and sanitation problems plague many Iraqi villages, the team was prepared to treat infectious illnesses. They were also prepared for war, although the areas they worked in were always secured.

Gust and her colleagues returned home in June as a second team from Northwest Medical Teams arrived to continue their work. "There is a definite need for comprehensive, long-term rehabilitation and reconstruction in the country," Gust said.

Northwest Medical Teams plans to send volunteers and medical supplies during the next six months to help rebuild Iraq's health care system in villages and hospitals.

Contact Linda Childers at eastbaypr@aol.com