Nurses Role In The Vietnam War

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“‘I try to remind Americans that for the Vietnamese it was “The American War,’ and the battle was on their soil’” (as cited in Anderson 132). Sometimes the United States forgets that not only American soldiers were being wounded and that not only U.S. families were receiving devastating news about a family member, but also Vietnamese families. Americans need to understand that although the Vietnamese caused damage to the U.S., the U.S. delivered just as much destruction in return. Several nurses and medics tried to heal severe injuries caused to American soldiers. Around 90 percent of enlisted and volunteer women were military nurses and almost all women in the military were volunteers (History.com Staff). The nurses were to return soldiers …show more content…

Furthermore, women in the Vietnam War were either enlisted or volunteers. Some Women willingly entered because they wanted to help injured soldiers, receive professional instruction and education, serve their country, prove themselves, improve upon their military careers, or to try something new (Unknown). Women volunteered for a multitude of reasons, and although a few were enlisted, the Vietnam War was sure to be an unforgettable adventure. These women have images burned in their memories from their experiences, but helping people was what made a nurse’s jobs so important and rewarding. Their shifts were long and the injuries they attempted to heal were sometimes terrifying, but nurses and medics still found joy in helping someone (Unknown). Sending someone back to their family alive was probably the greatest action they could’ve done. Nurses accomplished astonishing acts of kindness by helping a wounded victim every day they were on duty. Although nurses frequently saw soldiers distraught by war, they still cherished being able to assist in treatment of the soldiers’ injuries. Nurses coming home from their precarious days in Vietnam felt strong resentment towards the war and some even joined anti-war campaigns. Women felt stressed and out of place, but as one Nurse states, “‘In spite of all the awful things in Vietnam and your incredibly …show more content…

Not only men, but also women went through rigorous and frightening occurrences every day. “‘What they [the women vets] know… is that the U.S. government, to this day, can’t even say how many of them actually served in Vietnam’” (as cited in Anderson