Battle fatigue intervention: a vital role for nursing.

From both a strategic military point of view and in terms of the potential for long-term psychiatric disability, the impact of battle fatigue is extremely significant. Using the basic management principles of Brevity, Immediacy, Centrality, Expectancy, Proximity, and Simplicity, all members of the health team can provide successful intervention, returning as many as 80% of battle fatigue casualties to combat. These intervention techniques can be mastered by members of all specialties, not just mental health providers. With its health education mission, professional nursing has the distinct opportunity to take a leading role in educating, not just the medics and corpsmen who will most likely be the first to encounter battle fatigue casualties, but the line community as well. It is the line commanders who can institute preventive measures to minimize the risk of battle fatigue as well as recognize early signs and initiate intervention. This paper examines the many aspects of battle fatigue from contributing factors to management principles to prevention to assist professional nurses in understanding and carrying out their role.