Army Nurse Summer Training Program prepares future military nurses at Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital
Throughout the month-long program, the cadets rotated through clinical departments across the hospital, working alongside nurses, physicians and healthcare professionals while gaining hands-on experience in emergency medicine, labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum (LDRP) care, pharmacy, behavioral health and other specialty areas. The program also included Tactical Combat Casualty Care training, aeromedical evacuation familiarization with Charlie Company “Cajun Dustoff,” 1st Battalion, 5th Aviation Regiment, and high-fidelity simulation training designed to strengthen patient care skills and military readiness.
Rather than concentrating the cadets in a single department, Capt. Rebecca Horgan, chief of the Mixed Medical-Surgical Ward and Nurse Summer Training Program coordinator at BJACH, intentionally developed rotations that exposed them to the broad range of professionals supporting patient care throughout the hospital.
“Our hospital is very small, and we couldn’t put everyone in one department like a large trauma center,” Horgan said. “We mapped out nursing functions throughout the hospital and expanded into areas like pharmacy and behavioral health so the cadets could learn from professionals across multiple disciplines.”
Horgan said those experiences were designed to help the cadets understand that outstanding patient care extends beyond the bedside and depends on collaboration across the healthcare team.
Lt. Col. Carmen Salcedo, assistant deputy commander for nursing at BJACH, said the program prepares cadets for much more than clinical practice.
“In the civilian sector, for most nurses, their primary—and sometimes only—focus is clinical mastery,” Salcedo said during the graduation ceremony. “In the Army, clinical excellence is your baseline. When you commission, you are leaders.”
Salcedo said serving as a clinical training site allows BJACH to help forge the next generation of Army Nurse Corps officers while strengthening a culture of continuous learning throughout the organization.
“Mentoring cadets reinforces a culture of safety, continuous learning and high clinical standards among BJACH’s current staff,” Salcedo said. “When experienced nurses teach and demonstrate best practices to cadets, they actively reinforce their own clinical protocols and critical thinking skills.”
For the cadets, that culture of mentorship became one of the program’s defining experiences.
Cadet Mason Potts, an Army ROTC nursing cadet from East Carolina University, said the hospital’s size created unexpected opportunities.
“When people think of BJACH, they often think of a smaller hospital, but I quickly realized that its size created many learning opportunities,” Potts said. “It allowed us to spend more intentional time with our patients, explore a variety of nursing specialties throughout the hospital, and gain exposure to different aspects of patient care.”
Other cadets echoed with similar experiences. Cadet Lorelai Smith, an Army ROTC nursing cadet from Creighton University, said one of the most valuable lessons she learned was that exceptional patient care depends on teamwork among nurses, physicians, pharmacists, radiology personnel, environmental services professionals and many others working together to support patients.
For Cadet Susan Yuan, an Army ROTC nursing cadet from Florida Southern College, the experience reinforced another important lesson.
“I have learned that no matter your rank or experience, everyone is still learning,” Yuan said. “You can learn something new from anyone whether it’s from a patient, a student, or a textbook.”
During the graduation ceremony, the cadets presented a process improvement initiative focused on reducing heat injuries among Soldiers training at the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Polk. Drawing on lessons learned during their rotation, the presentation highlighted evidence-based strategies to improve prevention, early recognition and treatment of heat-related illnesses while supporting operational readiness.
By the end of the four-week program, the cadets had gained not only clinical experience, but also a deeper appreciation for the interdisciplinary teamwork that enables military medicine to deliver safe, high-quality care to Soldiers, Families and beneficiaries.
As the program concluded, Horgan said she hopes the cadets leave BJACH with more than stronger clinical skills.
“I hope they realize that many of the people they meet in the hospital may not be nurses, but they can become trusted mentors, friends and teammates,” Horgan said. “Those relationships will be invaluable as they step out of their comfort zones and begin their careers as newly commissioned Army Nurse Corps officers.”
The seven cadets will now return to their universities to complete their nursing degrees before commissioning as officers in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, carrying with them the clinical experience, mentorship and leadership lessons gained during their time at Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital.
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