Psychiatry at NCC vs. TAMC

[junsamee]

Applying to psych this coming 10/15!

Is there anyone who is currently a psych resident at either one of those places that can talk a little about the pros and cons of the two programs?

Some things that I am curious to know about are... the emphasis on psychodynamic/psychoanalysis therapy, on call schedules and general rotation schedules from PGY1 through 4, learning opportunities, research and other 'scholarly activities', fellowships, living area, and competitiveness compared to the other (I know psych in the military isn't generally competitive.. but is one of them more competitive than the other?)

Thank you in advance!!

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[DrMetal]

Applying to psych this coming 10/15!

Is there anyone who is currently a psych resident at either one of those places that can talk a little about the pros and cons of the two programs?

Some things that I am curious to know about are... the emphasis on psychodynamic/psychoanalysis therapy, on call schedules and general rotation schedules from PGY1 through 4, learning opportunities, research and other 'scholarly activities', fellowships, living area, and competitiveness compared to the other (I know psych in the military isn't generally competitive.. but is one of them more competitive than the other?)

Thank you in advance!!

I'm not a psych resident, and I only having a passing familiarity with the program at NCC (and absolutely no experience with TAMC) . . . .but if I were a betting man, I'd put my money on TAMC being the better program (in terms of higher acuity, high patient volume and thus being a better place to train). I surmise this b/c Tripler serves the entire military population of HI and serves as a reach-back hub for all of the Navy Hospitals in Japan, Guam, and TAMC probably receives a good number of medevacs as well.

The one advantage the NCC program though is the plethora of civilian psych institutes in the DC Metro area; I'm sure you'll rotate through some of them and get to see some truly nutty pathology.

In any case, make sure you rotate at both places and talk to their residents extensively. That's really the best way to get good info, in order to make a good decision.

 

[TheGoose]

Tamc also has a whole bunch of VA players on the inpatient service

 

[NavyFP]

I'd vote TAMC unless you have a professional spouse or school age children. When else are you going to have an opportunity to live in Hawaii. That and the training is decent.

 

[notdeadyet]

I'm not a resident at either program.

I will say that psychoanalytic therapy training relies heavily on the community for support. You will have more options for psychoanalytics via a place like DC than a place like Honolulu.

 

[junsamee]

Thank you all for your input.. I knew about the vast coverage of locations at tamc but didn't know that it also had a quality training.. ncc does seem to have more civilian psych rotation opportunities and a better environment for my wife who is an RN. But after all, nothing can beat actually going there and experience it myself.

Any other thoughts from anyone else?

 

[Joob]

I am a current resident at the Walter Reed program and can answer your questions regarding my program.

Call schedules: During PGY-1/2, you work a combination of 4 hour weekday shifts, 16 hour Friday shifts, 24 hour Saturdays, and 12 hour Sundays. During both of these years, I probably worked roughly 25-30 hours total per month during both of these years. PGY-3/4 are 3 weeks of home call per year (really easy).

General rotation schedules: It pretty much runs the gamut of all subspecialties, however, WR has access to a large number of civilian facilities exposing you to pathology you won't see in the military ie., chronic schizophrenia, inpatient children's wards.

Learning opportunities: This is kind of vague, but there are a bunch of educational opportunities available and encouraged. There are multiple highly regarded psychoanalytic fellowships available to take during residency, for example. We have didactics, symposiums available also.

Research and other scholarly activities: Both highly encouragerd, a bunch of us went to the APA last year to present our cases, research, etc.

Fellowships: We have them all here at WR, except addictions, and you'll likely have a better chance to match into one, if you work with the faculty prior. Just for clarification we have, Forensics, CL, Child/Adolescent, Pain, Sleep.

Living area: DC is awesome, you won't run out of new, exciting experiences

Competitiveness: Changes every year.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

 

[junsamee]

Thank you so much for your thorough and thoughtful answer! Nope I think that answers it all for now. Thank you sir/ma'am!