American Military Nurses in the Vietnam War

The first United States Army nurses arrived in South Vietnam in 1962, and their numbers expanded rapidly as American combat forces increased. Nurses served in field, surgical and evacuation hospitals, treating severe wounds under conditions shaped by mass casualties, long shifts, limited equipment and the continuing threat of attack.

Most were young officers serving one-year tours, and many acquired advanced trauma skills through immediate experience. Their work contributed to changes in military medicine, while their later lives also revealed the psychological cost of service and the difficulty female veterans faced in gaining public recognition.

Kristin Hannah’s The Women follows a fictional Army nurse whose service and homecoming reflect the experiences of women who treated the wounded in Vietnam.