Army Nursing Practice during Operations Other than War

Today, the U.S. Army is performing a variety of missions that fall under the category of "Operations Other Than War (OOTW)." Two of these missions are peacekeeping and peace enforcement. Previously, a grounded theory study considered the experience of Air Force nurses serving in Croatia. No other studies were found that addressed the practice of nursing in OOTW deployments. The purpose of this study is to describe, and generate a theoretical analysis of, Army nursing practice in operations other than war (OOTW) comparing multiple locations. Understanding the similarities and differences between different deployment locations will provide grounding for a theory of OOTW deployments in general, rather than location-specific. The research question guiding this study will be: What is the practice of nursing by Army Nurse Corps officers in operations other than war? This study will use a descriptive exploratory qualitative method guided by the Army Nursing Practice conceptual model (Kennedy, Hill, Adams & Jennings, 1996) Army Nurse Corps officers, both active duty and reserve component, will be asked to participate in an interview using a focused interview guide. These nurses will have completed an OOTW deployment within the past three years. Those in the continental United States outside the local area or overseas will be contacted for an interview by phone. Those in the local area will take part in a face-to-face interview. Those in the Fort Bragg area would be invited to take part in a face-to face interview over a three day site visit. Consent forms will be mailed in advance and returned signed and witnessed prior to the telephone interviews. Additionally, verbal consent will be obtained on the tape- recording before beginning any formal interview questions. The maximum sample size would be dependent upon the need for more interviews based on emerging data and achieving theoretical saturation (Sandelowski, 1986). Demographic data will be summarized and presented using frequencies and descriptive statistics. Qualitative data analysis as described by Miles and Huberman (1994) will be used to simultaneously analyze and direct data collection to answer the research questions. By understanding the practice of nursing in OOTW, leadership can best prepare and train nurses to effectively function and care for patients in these challenging settings.

Final report available on NTRL: https://ntrl.ntis.gov/NTRL/dashboard/searchResults/titleDetail/PB2009107...