Vietnam Nurses (ATOM Study Guide)

Vietnam Nurses is a compelling film suitable for senior secondary students told from a less than familiar perspective. Six Australian army nurses who served in Vietnam as part of Australia's military commitment and who were based at the only Australian field hospital, in Vung Tau, South Vietnam, talk about the life and death situations they faced in theatre and intensive care and their unpreparedness for the intensity of nursing in a war zone or the horrific injuries with which they were confronted.

The film is a celebration of oral history where the memories shared by each woman are told in their own voice and has a powerful and universal resonance that is deeply moving despite the passage of time. War leaves a lasting impression and although now in their fifties and sixties, they can still vividly describe the young soldiers they fought to keep alive, as well as the sights and smells of an intriguing culture where, despite the war, the cycle of life continued as it had for thousands of years.

Curriculum Links:
This film will be of interest to teachers and students from senior secondary school in the following subject areas:
• History
• Geography
• Social and Cultural Studies
• Studies of Society and the Environment
• Health and Human Development
• Media Studies