Relief and transportation of victims on the battlefield from the viewpoint of military nurses: a qualitative study

Nurses are the biggest groups that provide relief and transport services in critical conditions and battlefields. Although many studies are published regarding the role of nurses in war the number of qualitative researches in this field is limited. This study was conducted to identify the role of nurses in the relief and transportation of injured victims on the battlefield.

This qualitative conventional content analysis was done in 2018. Using purposive sampling, 26 nurses with a recent history of participation in military missions were invited to include in the study. Data collection was carried out using in-depth semi-structured interviews. All data is recorded and typed in MAXQDA software, then analyses included 8 steps: transcription the interviews; identifying semantic units; coding; revising codes with text; classifying and developing categories; reviewing categories; identifying themes; and reporting the findings.

In conclusion, 212 codes and 23 subcategories and seven categories were extracted from data analysis. Also three main themes including the "Life savior in relief and transmission", "Management and leadership of relief and transportation" and "Unorganized relief and transportation" were emerged. The main categories were: management skills in relief and transportation, human resources development, savior characteristics and capabilities, knowledge and skills of a savior, unorganized transfer, unorganized saving interventions, and unorganized management.

The findings of this study showed that relief and transportation on the battlefield were fit to the needs of the war. Applying nurses' experiences in this field can create an integrated relevant resource for relief and transportation services and improving combat power.