Doctors’ and Nurses’ Perceptions of Military Pre-hospital Emergency Care

• The aim of this study was to identify physicians’ and nurses’ perceptions of military prehospital emergency care before and after an international mission. A qualitative empirical study with a phenomenographic approach was used. The aim is to identify the area of knowledge, pre-hospital care in a military environment, in terms of expressions from doctors and nurses focussing on the variation in how learning of pre-hospital care is perceived. The result of the study is a set of descriptive categories on a collective level, showing the variation in how doctors and nurses perceived the phenomenon of military pre-hospital emergency care. The results after predeployment training can be categorized as (1) to learn military medicine, (2) to take care of the casualty and (3) to have safety awareness. The results after an international mission can be categorized as (1) to collaborate with others, (2) to deliver general health care, and (3) to improve competence in military medicine. Possible implications of the results from the present study are the following; (I) better conditions for doctors and nurses to provide appropriate military medical care by clarification and better understanding of professions in the mission area (doctors, nurses, officers), since they may have different goals for their actions, (II) to pay attention to all aspects of military health care during predeployment training, including general health care in the mission area, (III) to implement new knowledge in military medicine in the predeployment training, and (IV) to train for the reality all doctors and nurses are about to meet. These results indicate  that the training should be developed in order to optimize the prepare physicians and nurses for international assignments. This may result in increased safety for the provider of care, while at the same time minimizing suffering and enhancing the possibility of survival of the injured.

Subject headings

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Hälsovetenskap -- Omvårdnad (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Health Sciences -- Nursing (hsv//eng)

Publication and Content Type

vet (subject category)

ovr (subject category)