handbook for navy internship/residency

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Match day has come and gone, and now that I'm sure my husband will be doing a military residency, I have a few questions.

Is there a handbook or something that outlines the benifits and rules of internship year in the Navy? (I.e. similar to the student handbook for HPSP)

We are planning a trip to Portsmouth to look for housing...will the Navy reimburse our stay at the BQ? Probably not...just thought I'd ask.

Is buying a home a good idea? Or is there a good chance that where you do internship will be different from where you do residency?

Thanks!

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Match day has come and gone, and now that I'm sure my husband will be doing a military residency, I have a few questions.

Is there a handbook or something that outlines the benifits and rules of internship year in the Navy? (I.e. similar to the student handbook for HPSP)

We are planning a trip to Portsmouth to look for housing...will the Navy reimburse our stay at the BQ? Probably not...just thought I'd ask.

Is buying a home a good idea? Or is there a good chance that where you do internship will be different from where you do residency?

Thanks!
1. I am sure their is a handbook at Portsmouth.
2. The BOQ is very cheap I think roughly 35 a night.
3. Portsmouth housing is extremely expensive. Their are nice apartments outside of the base running roughly 1000-1600 monthly with nice perks right outside of the hospital. Downtown Portsmouth is nice but pricey 2 bedroom condos/town homes 300,000's somewhat but anywhere outside that is combat city. Many residents live in Suffolk which is roughly a 20 minute drive west of Portsmouth I found really nice condos on a golf course 2- 3 br roughly mid 200,000. Also if you live outside of Portsmouth in places such as Virginia beach, Norfolk, your husband is looking at a nasty commute through a 2 lane tunnel which is quite jammy in the mornings. Regarding buying a home if your husband matched in internal medicine or transitional or surgery he will probably end up doing a GMO tour which means more than likely you will be utilized elsewhere.
PS Check out Bruttis Caffe in Portsmouth nice ambiance excellent Sunday brunch.
 
Thanks for the information. I was wondering if there is a more comprehensive handbook for navy residency (i.e. something that outlines the details of vacation time, what can be reimbursed, salary, health insurance, etc).

Even if he does do a GMO, what are the chances that we'd return to Portsmouth for the remainder of his residency training? If there's a good chance that we'd be back for PG2-PG5, perhaps it would be a good idea to go ahead a buy a place (even if he were gone on GMO for a year or two).

Thanks!
 
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Thanks for the information. I was wondering if there is a more comprehensive handbook for navy residency (i.e. something that outlines the details of vacation time, what can be reimbursed, salary, health insurance, etc).

Even if he does do a GMO, what are the chances that we'd return to Portsmouth for the remainder of his residency training? If there's a good chance that we'd be back for PG2-PG5, perhaps it would be a good idea to go ahead a buy a place (even if he were gone on GMO for a year or two).

Thanks!

I know of no handbook that contains the information you are seeking. To give you a rough idea of the ie.s

Vacation - he will earn 30 days per year. While an intern he will be allowed to take 14 days. This is standard mil/civ and regulated by the National Residency Review Committees. As a 2nd and third year, he will be allowed more time off, but the total limit is usually 28 days away from program for any reason. (he won't have to worry about maternity leave)

Salary - Assuming no prior service, LT pay with less that 2 years. Basic Allowance for Housing and Subsistance. You can find these rates on www.dfas.mil. In addtion, he will receive $100 per month in variable special pay for being an intern. Not much, but better than a poke in the eye. Total compensation will be around 60-65K.

Health Benefits. Full medical and dental coverage. Medical will be through the hospital and dental will be through United Concordia(for you and any kids). It is generally good coverage and I have never had an issue with it for my family.

You will have unlimited access to the commisary and exchange. The commisary is nice and you can get most of the staples for better prices than the local megamart.

The military will pay to move you to your new city. You will arrange this through the local transportation office. When you first arrive you will be given additional money to stay in temporary quarters (hotel, boq, navy lodge) while you arrange housing.

The intern coordinator at the hospital can also be of assisstance.
 
I know of no handbook that contains the information you are seeking. To give you a rough idea of the ie.s

Vacation - he will earn 30 days per year. While an intern he will be allowed to take 14 days. This is standard mil/civ and regulated by the National Residency Review Committees. As a 2nd and third year, he will be allowed more time off, but the total limit is usually 28 days away from program for any reason. (he won't have to worry about maternity leave)

Salary - Assuming no prior service, LT pay with less that 2 years. Basic Allowance for Housing and Subsistance. You can find these rates on www.dfas.mil. In addtion, he will receive $100 per month in variable special pay for being an intern. Not much, but better than a poke in the eye. Total compensation will be around 60-65K.

Health Benefits. Full medical and dental coverage. Medical will be through the hospital and dental will be through United Concordia(for you and any kids). It is generally good coverage and I have never had an issue with it for my family.

You will have unlimited access to the commisary and exchange. The commisary is nice and you can get most of the staples for better prices than the local megamart.

The military will pay to move you to your new city. You will arrange this through the local transportation office. When you first arrive you will be given additional money to stay in temporary quarters (hotel, boq, navy lodge) while you arrange housing.

The intern coordinator at the hospital can also be of assisstance.


Great information, NavyFP. Thank you so much for taking the time to type it out for me!

How likely is it that my husband's PGY 2 through 5 would be in a different city from PGY 1 for General Surgery? I'm just wondering if we would be crazy to buy a home.

Thanks!
 
Great information, NavyFP. Thank you so much for taking the time to type it out for me!

How likely is it that my husband's PGY 2 through 5 would be in a different city from PGY 1 for General Surgery? I'm just wondering if we would be crazy to buy a home.

Thanks!

As a rule, we like to send people back to the same program. So the chances of returning to NMCP are very good.
 
Old town portsmouth seemed nice when I was there and there are plenty of rentals.

To anyone matching to Portsmouth,

I was stationed in the Hampton Roads area (Portsmouth, Norfolk, VA Beach, etc.) for 8 years, and I was a home owner for 7 of them. Here is a little advice about housing there:

1. Stay away from Old town, downtown, or any town with Portsmouth in it. Even though it is right outside of the hospital, the area is a ghetto! :scared:

2. The same goes for downtown Norfolk, and downtown Suffolk.

3. There are areas in the northern part of Suffolk (Churchland) with some newer neighborhoods where you won't get mugged or shot at. There are also some nice ares in Chesapeake and Great Bridge. Va Beach is a bit of a drive.

4. You may as well get used to the idea that a 20 minute commute is not really that bad. Hampton Roads is an older area and the road system reflects it. There are also alot of bridges and tunnels that are bottle-necks for traffic.

Good luck, any other questions just let me know. :)
 
To the Navy folks,

What did you match in? Did you get your first, second choice?
 
To anyone matching to Portsmouth,

I was stationed in the Hampton Roads area (Portsmouth, Norfolk, VA Beach, etc.) for 8 years, and I was a home owner for 7 of them. Here is a little advice about housing there:

1. Stay away from Old town, downtown, or any town with Portsmouth in it. Even though it is right outside of the hospital, the area is a ghetto! :scared:

2. The same goes for downtown Norfolk, and downtown Suffolk.

3. There are areas in the northern part of Suffolk (Churchland) with some newer neighborhoods where you won't get mugged or shot at. There are also some nice ares in Chesapeake and Great Bridge. Va Beach is a bit of a drive.

4. You may as well get used to the idea that a 20 minute commute is not really that bad. Hampton Roads is an older area and the road system reflects it. There are also alot of bridges and tunnels that are bottle-necks for traffic.

Good luck, any other questions just let me know. :)

Thanks. Let's say I am a New Yorker and think nothing of running alone in Harlem or taking the subway at 4am.

Does the above still apply?
 
To anyone matching to Portsmouth,

I was stationed in the Hampton Roads area (Portsmouth, Norfolk, VA Beach, etc.) for 8 years, and I was a home owner for 7 of them. Here is a little advice about housing there:

1. Stay away from Old town, downtown, or any town with Portsmouth in it. Even though it is right outside of the hospital, the area is a ghetto! :scared:

2. The same goes for downtown Norfolk, and downtown Suffolk.

3. There are areas in the northern part of Suffolk (Churchland) with some newer neighborhoods where you won't get mugged or shot at. There are also some nice ares in Chesapeake and Great Bridge. Va Beach is a bit of a drive.

4. You may as well get used to the idea that a 20 minute commute is not really that bad. Hampton Roads is an older area and the road system reflects it. There are also alot of bridges and tunnels that are bottle-necks for traffic.

Good luck, any other questions just let me know. :)

Not sure how long it has been since you were stationed in the Hampton Roads area, but I can assure you that many of your statements are no longer true.

1)Old Town is now quite nice especially down High Street towards the water. I would do my research and make sure the place is in the nice area, because there are still some bad areas in the downtown portsmouth area. There are some other nice areas in Portsmouth as well. There is one new neighborhood that is near a golf course in portsmouth that looks like it could be very nice in the next few years. Also you now have The Myrtles right outside the gate of the hospital which is a very nice apartment complex that many interns/residents live in. Known as the Intern Dorm though :)

2)Downtown Norfolk is awesome. The Ghent area specifically. Old Charm with excellent restaurants and shopping. Hard to go wrong down in that area; however, some of the other areas of downtown norfolk are rough.

3)I have to wonder how much you really know about the area when you call churchland "suffolk." Churchland is part of Portsmouth. Churchland is a nice area of portsmouth with lots of single family homes. Schools are still portsmouth though, so can be tough if you have school age children. Chesapeake has the best schools in the area, especially in the green brier and great bridge areas; however, it can be a commute from there (Tunnels/bridges). Some people do live in Va Beach, but it's usually only a couple single people who wanted to be near the beach.

4) The commute can be hit/miss. At the time interns/residents are getting to the hospital the traffic is not bad; however, leaving can be rough if you get out at a normal time. And good luck on the days you actually get to come in later. The key is to minimize bridge/tunnel traffic. Make sure to keep the tunnels in mind when looking for housing. If you live in portsmouth there are no tunnels to work. If you live in Ghent you have two tunnels to choose from. If you live in chesapeake/va beach you will have one or two options of getting to work. Just make sure to keep this in mind when looking at housing. It may look like a short commute in miles; however, it may take several minutes by driving due to the bottle neck at the tunnel or bridge.
 
Not sure how long it has been since you were stationed in the Hampton Roads area, but I can assure you that many of your statements are no longer true.

1)Old Town is now quite nice especially down High Street towards the water. I would do my research and make sure the place is in the nice area, because there are still some bad areas in the downtown portsmouth area.

2)Downtown Norfolk is awesome. The Ghent area specifically. Old Charm with excellent restaurants and shopping. Hard to go wrong down in that area; however, some of the other areas of downtown norfolk are rough.

3)I have to wonder how much you really know about the area when you call churchland "suffolk." Churchland is part of Portsmouth. Churchland is a nice area of portsmouth with lots of single family homes.

OK, apparently we are splitting hairs:
1. I will concede that Old Town has some nice homes; however, there are only a few square blocks of these and you seamlessly blend in with the rest of P-town. According to City Crime rankings (2005 info) Portsmouth tied for #28 in the COUNTRY for cities with the highest murder rate (21.8 per 100,000). This rate beat out other much safer cities such as Atlanta, Chicago, and Los Angeles. You're right, the info is a couple of years old so I'm sure they have turned things completely around by now.

2. OK, once again the Ghent area seemed nice when I drove by it, but by simply crossing the street you fall into a similar situation as P-town. Norfolk actually beat out Portsmouth and held the #22 spot with 24.5 murders per 100,000.

3. Wonder no more. When I lived in the "Churchland AREA" for 7 years, it encompased parts of Portsmouth, Chesapeake, and northern Suffolk. Now there are some parts of Portsmouth officially calling themselves Churchland, with a couple of schools named as such. As a side note Suffolk held the #88 spot with 11.6 murders per 100,000, but the bad areas of suffolk are not within walking distance (15 or so minute drive!!!) to the northern part of suffolk where some of the nicer neighborboods are.

Have a nice day

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0934323.html
 
As a side note Suffolk held the #88 spot with 11.6 murders per 100,000, but the bad areas of suffolk are not within walking distance (15 or so minute drive!!!) to the northern part of suffolk where some of the nicer neighborboods are.

But did this include the amount of crime against farm animals ;)

Actually suffolk is quite nice, especially around the Harborview area; however, the houses in that area will cost you ~500,000. Some of the parts of suffolk that are more reasonable can be a little further out, and there is nothing in suffolk to do other than harborview. If you want night life and restaurants go for Ghent or Olde Towne.
 
But did this include the amount of crime against farm animals

Funny that you mention this. If I remember right, there was some freak arrested for stalking horses near suffolk a while back. :eek:
 
Thanks for the feedback everyone. We're leaning towards renting in Olde Towne Portsmouth. Being walking distance from the hospital is a huge plus! Any idea of how much we should expect to pay?

Thanks!
 
Many residents live in Suffolk which is roughly a 20 minute drive west of Portsmouth [...] in places such as Virginia beach, Norfolk, your husband is looking at a nasty commute through a 2 lane tunnel which is quite jammy in the mornings.

This is very true. When we bought our house, we didn't even look at anything which would involve a commute with a bridge or tunnel. Ended up buying in Suffolk, and my daily commute to NMCP is always about 20-25 minutes. There is never, ever any traffic in or out, regardless of time of day. It's 70 mph in and out. In 18 months, I can count on one hand the number of days I hit any significant traffic.

Every day driving home, I look at the half-mile of people stuck in the left lane of Effingham street, trying to get on the freeway so they can inch through that tunnel, and I think "thank God I don't live in VA Beach" ... some days I figure I'm home before they even hit the other side of the tunnel.

Full medical and dental coverage. Medical will be through the hospital and dental will be through United Concordia(for you and any kids). It is generally good coverage and I have never had an issue with it for my family.

Medical for family members will most likely NOT be through the hospital. Every clinic is full, and has been full, and family members will probably get farmed out to clinics. The fact that you are staff at the hospital has no impact on where your family gets assigned. Which is OK, except I'm still a bit irritated that I have never been able to take 10 minutes out of my day to go to my kids' appointments with them.

Dental coverage is thin. United Concordia covers very, very little outside of annual exams/cleanings. If you actually need any work done, you will end up paying the lion's share yourself.
 
What kinds of things can be reimbursed during internship and residency? Dry cleaning, books, absite exam fees, etc.?
 
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