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“The Wild West:” Nurse Experiences of Responding to the 2017 Las Vegas Mass Shooting

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 September 2023

Kristen R. Choi Open the ORCID record for Kristen R. Choi [Opens in a new window] ,
MarySue V. Heilemann ,
Stephanie Anne Romero ,
Kelly Peng ,
Joyce Wu ,
Dorita Sondereker ,
Christopher Fisher  and
Melissa Brymer
Kristen R. Choi*
Affiliation:
School of Nursing, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA Department of Health Policy and Management, Fielding School of Public Health, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
MarySue V. Heilemann
Affiliation:
School of Nursing, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
Stephanie Anne Romero
Affiliation:
School of Nursing, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
Kelly Peng
Affiliation:
School of Nursing, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
Joyce Wu
Affiliation:
School of Nursing, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
Dorita Sondereker
Affiliation:
HealthTrust Workforce Solutions, Las Vegas, NV, USA
Christopher Fisher
Affiliation:
Sunrise Hospital, Las Vegas, NV, USA
Melissa Brymer
Affiliation:
National Center for Child Traumatic Stress, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
*
Corresponding author: Kristen R. Choi; Email: krchoi@ucla.edu.
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Abstract

Objective:

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of nurses who responded to a public mass shooting in 2017.

Methods:

This qualitative study was conducted with a sample of nurses who responded to a mass shooting, recruited purposively from a hospital in Las Vegas, Nevada. Intensive interviews were conducted with a total of 7 nurses, audio-recorded and transcribed for thematic analysis.

Results:

Six themes were developed from interview data: (1) “The worst night of my life”: Overrun and overwhelmed; (2) Unexpected altruism and benevolence of patients and staff; (3) “The Wild West”: Giving victim care by improvising beyond rules; (4) Experiencing a range of reactions in the immediate aftermath and in the long term; (5) Shifts in nursing practice and evolving team dynamics; and (6) Defining realistic approaches to support staff mental health and mass casualty preparation.

Conclusion:

Nurses who were involved in responding to the public mass shooting described the event as life-altering. Given the critical role of nurses in responding to mass shootings, it is essential to consider how nurses can be supported in the aftermath of these events and how mass disaster preparation can include attention to the needs of nurses.

Keywords

mass casualty incidentsemergency nursingstress disorderstraumatic
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 17 , 2023 , e492
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health

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