Professionalism, honor, and respect on September 11th: A historical view of the initial response and recovery mortuary team

Abstract

The author is an Army nurse who is assigned as the Assistant Director, Reserve and Medical Manpower in the Accession Policy Directorate of the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Military Personnel Policy). She provided the leadership for the Initial Response and Recovery Mortuary Team. This team was responsible for retrieving the dead and wounded from the wreckage of the Pentagon during September 2001. The article is written as a personal account. The intent is to learn from this event and to assure families and friends their loved ones were taken care of with professionalism, honor, and respect.