Published: October 01, 2009 11:19 pm      

Instructor returns from overseas duty to MCC family

For the past year Jane Brand has seen the results of war in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

As a U.S. Navy Reserve commander, Brand has spent the last 12 months as a charge nurse at the U.S. military hospital in Landstul, Germany putting her professional life as a nursing instructor at Meridian Community College and her personal life at home with her family in Chunky on hold. It was a tour of duty she was honored to take but one that was humbling at the same time.

Brand has been home since August and took the month off to get reacquainted with her family. On her first day back at her civilian post Thursday afternoon she was surprised at a reception in her honor by her second family — her colleagues who have missed her presence in the classrooms.

"We have really missed her," said Teresa Aycock, a fellow instructor who said Brand was her mentor. "It seems years since she's been here."

"This means a lot to us that she is back," added Dr. Betty Davis, who is the Associate Dean of Nursing at MCC. "The entire staff has done their part to take up her job duties but it is the students who have really missed her teachings."

The entire nursing staff at MCC pitched in for the reception for Brand. Brand had no idea why she was summoned to the Casteel Gallery. When she opened the door she was taken aback at the greeting.

Aycock said Brand's office has been remodeled since her deployment. The only thing that was lacking was an office chair suitable for her to sit in. The instructors wheeled out a new office chair, which Brand tried on for size.

"I've never worked with people who were more wonderful than these here" Brand said, also clutching a stuffed animal presented to her. "They are like my second family."

For almost 15 years Brand has shared her nursing experience with thousands of students who have moved through the hallways of MCC to become nurses. Her steadiness in the classroom spilled over to the 28-bed medical/surgical unit she was in charge of in Germany where she had to facilitate the care and comfort of men and women injured in the War on Terror. Brand said it was a humbling experience to say the least.

"We would get these young men and women in who had combat injuries," she said softly. "Some would have missing limbs, others would be in worse shape. It was our job as nurses to provide the best Trauma 3 care we could."

Brand saw a lot of injuries from the dreaded improvised explosive device, the IED, or roadside bombs. IEDs have killed and injured far more soldiers than actual combat. Brand also sees something on the horizon as well.

"A lot of these soldiers are going to be dealing with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)," she said. "They will have to learn how to deal with this and the students in the classrooms today are going to see this more and more in their careers."

But for Thursday the faces and names of those injured were far away as Brand acknowledged that she, at least, was home again with her two families.