When Beth Fiske and Debbie Persell became nurses back in the 1970s, they probably figured the profession would take them places. They could travel, work in a variety of environments, and enjoy a collection of new experiences–but traveling to Hiroshima, Japan, this past summer? Well, that, they may not have seen coming. The duo spent most of the month of June studying the long-term effects of radiation from the famous atomic blast that led to the end of World War II. It was a trip they’ll never forget.

“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience you never expect to come your way,” says Persell. “It was truly amazing.”

Persell, an associate professor at Arkansas State University, and Fiske, an assistant professor at Carson-Newman College in Tennessee, are both seeking their doctorate in the Homeland Security Nursing program at the University of Tennessee. Through the program, they learned about the trip, applied, and were accepted. The program was coordinated by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF), and the Hiroshima International Council for Health Care of the Radiation-exposed.

“I am certainly honored to have had this experience,” Fiske says. “I felt very privileged to be able to work with researchers who have devoted their lives to this project.”

Before they got to the researchers, however, Fiske and Persell gave a presentation at the International Council of Nurses Conference in Yokohama, Japan. From there, it was off to Hiroshima, where gracious attitudes were never in short supply. “The Japanese agencies we worked with there went out of their way to make us feel welcome and meet our educational needs,” Persell says. “We wrote our own objectives to go there and they made sure that was exactly what we were exposed to.”

The impressive research and attention to detail made an impact on Fiske. Scientists study the effects of the blast based on factors such as distance from the blast, age of exposure, and length of exposure. “As a novice researcher, I learned quite a bit from the complex research designs and statistical methods used by the researchers at RERF,” Fiske says. “I was very impressed by the respect and dignity that was given to the study participants.”

The number of survivors from the day are becoming fewer and fewer, however. Time and health are taking their toll on the aging population. Fiske and Persell had the chance to meet with many of the survivors at nursing homes and assisted living facilities, and naturally were taken in by the emotion involved. (Read more about their personal memories in the second part of the story on Friday.)

“There are survivors throughout the world,” Fiske says. “The hope is that we may provide care in the future . . . and to educate other nurses about the care of the Hibakusha (A-bomb survivors).”

Persell is responsible for teaching the disaster courses at Arkansas State and says she will use the knowledge gained from the trip in many ways. “Nursing students are just coming forward and saying we know we need to learn about it,” she says. “They are adding more hours to a very filled curriculum.”

But the best lesson from the trip may go beyond any curriculum.

“The greatest lesson to me is the importance of promoting peace,” Fiske says, “and never allowing such a horrific act of war to occur again.”