A Positive Side of Deployment: Vicarious Posttraumatic Growth in U.S. Military Nurses Who Served in the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars.

Abstract

To describe vicarious posttraumatic growth in U.S. military nurses who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. A cross-sectional descriptive design was used. Respondents were asked to complete the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI), Core Beliefs Inventory (CBI), and six open-ended write-in questions as an electronic survey. Appreciation of life and Personal strength were the strongest dimensions on the PTGI. This was also evident in participant responses to the open-ended questions. The five dimensions of the PTGI were significantly correlated, indicating as growth increased in one dimension, growth increased in all dimensions. The CBI showed moderate to strong positive correlations with all items. Thus, the relationship between the total PTGI scores and the total CBI scores showed a strong, positive correlation, which indicated higher overall core belief scores associated with more growth in total PTGI scores. This study provided initial evidence that some nurses who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars experienced posttraumatic growth. While healthcare providers need to be educated about their vulnerability when exposed to trauma, they also need to be aware of potential growth when caring for casualties. Nurses preparing to serve in war, as well as those returning, need to pay attention to their physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual health. Following return from war deployment, the military services need to take deliberate and careful measures to ensure that no returning personnel "fall through the cracks" in getting the help they need.