Stress and arousal in deployment of a combat support hospital

Two hundred thirty-nine soldiers from the 28th Combat Support Hospital were evaluated for stress and arousal during deployment preparations for Operation Uphold Democracy. We measured stress and arousal using the Stress Arousal Checklist and found increased levels of arousal in officers and older soldiers. We also found higher levels of arousal in soldiers reporting a greater number of hours of sleep during the preceding 24 hours. We found no significant difference in stress scores for several demographic and coping behavior groups. Based on lower arousal scores, younger, sleep-deprived, and enlisted soldiers may be at the highest risk for accidents during deployment preparations.