- Joined
- Jun 12, 2006
- Messages
- 354
- Reaction score
- 6
I wanted to give a little insight into being a military surgeon. I recently separated from the military after 11 years- 6 years in surgical training at a military medical center and 5 years of payback. I signed up as a 24 year old and luckily my training and specialty selection went reasonably well but I was very lucky in that regard. The most trouble I ever got into in the military was a speeding ticket on base.
1) You may not be allowed to train in your specialty of choice. Surgical specialties have limited spots and you as a medical student are in competition with physicians "in the field" who often have priority over students coming right out of school. I saw many try and fail to get into my specialty just because there were was "no need".
2) They do not have to let you do a fellowship. I was told I could do a fellowship after my surgical residency and that there was "need". I spent a couple thousand dollars getting a fellowship and was not allowed to do that fellowship at the last moment.
3) Moving around and seeing the world sounds great as an unmarried 26 year old. However, when your spouse has a career and the military wants to move you every 3 years just for the sake of it.... let your spouse try to succeed in their own business or their law firm. Military spouses apparently are supposed to be bank tellers and cashiers or not work historically.
4) You have no control over your practice. Say you have two ENT partners... two of them end their commitment but the military hospital does not get replacements either by oversight or not enough bodies.... suddenly you are on call every day and you are seeing many more patients than may be safe. Sending those patients to civilian practices costs the hospital money... overworking you does not cost any money. Hiring civilian ENTs to share call costs money....you taking continuous call does not.
5) Doesn't it seem grand to be a respected doctor? It did to me when I was a medical student. The problem with being a military physician is in the eyes of your command... you are an officer first not a doctor. You park in the same lots as the 18 year old medical techs, you get no special treatment or extra respect. My commanders where physical therapists and nurses which I guess is fine... but they don't understand much about what it is that I did on a daily basis.
6) In the real world, as a physician you are a revenue generator. In the military, you are a resource consumer. Nobody makes more money no matter how hard you work or if you don't do much at all. In fact, nobody makes more money no matter how hard anyone does or doesn't work. It migrates to the lowest common denominator. It is very frustrating as a hard working, motivated person to watch that every day. The doctors, techs, and nurses who stay in 20 years chasing the retirment rabbit learn this... try to ask these people to work to your standards and swim in the disappointment.
7) The old mentality is that it is cheaper to replace you than it is to retain you. This ultimately will not be true as people realize that when they sign up for military medicine they are assuring themselves of multiple deployments to the middle east. At present, that is still the mentality however.
8) It is not cost effective for many specialties to take the military scholarship. It might be for pediatrics or family practice but it is not for the medicine subspecialties, surgery, anesthesia, etc. They could triple your stipend and it still would not be cost effective.
9) It is cost effective to get out of the military after 14-17 years and forfeit retirement benefits of staying in 20 years for many specialties: GI, surgery, anesthesia, nephrology etc.
I actually had a decent time in the military. I was well-trained and worked with some great people and the military catchment patients are superb. HOWEVER.... I was lied to in the recruitment of my scholarship and given a lot of misinformation along the way.
hasta,
1) You may not be allowed to train in your specialty of choice. Surgical specialties have limited spots and you as a medical student are in competition with physicians "in the field" who often have priority over students coming right out of school. I saw many try and fail to get into my specialty just because there were was "no need".
2) They do not have to let you do a fellowship. I was told I could do a fellowship after my surgical residency and that there was "need". I spent a couple thousand dollars getting a fellowship and was not allowed to do that fellowship at the last moment.
3) Moving around and seeing the world sounds great as an unmarried 26 year old. However, when your spouse has a career and the military wants to move you every 3 years just for the sake of it.... let your spouse try to succeed in their own business or their law firm. Military spouses apparently are supposed to be bank tellers and cashiers or not work historically.
4) You have no control over your practice. Say you have two ENT partners... two of them end their commitment but the military hospital does not get replacements either by oversight or not enough bodies.... suddenly you are on call every day and you are seeing many more patients than may be safe. Sending those patients to civilian practices costs the hospital money... overworking you does not cost any money. Hiring civilian ENTs to share call costs money....you taking continuous call does not.
5) Doesn't it seem grand to be a respected doctor? It did to me when I was a medical student. The problem with being a military physician is in the eyes of your command... you are an officer first not a doctor. You park in the same lots as the 18 year old medical techs, you get no special treatment or extra respect. My commanders where physical therapists and nurses which I guess is fine... but they don't understand much about what it is that I did on a daily basis.
6) In the real world, as a physician you are a revenue generator. In the military, you are a resource consumer. Nobody makes more money no matter how hard you work or if you don't do much at all. In fact, nobody makes more money no matter how hard anyone does or doesn't work. It migrates to the lowest common denominator. It is very frustrating as a hard working, motivated person to watch that every day. The doctors, techs, and nurses who stay in 20 years chasing the retirment rabbit learn this... try to ask these people to work to your standards and swim in the disappointment.
7) The old mentality is that it is cheaper to replace you than it is to retain you. This ultimately will not be true as people realize that when they sign up for military medicine they are assuring themselves of multiple deployments to the middle east. At present, that is still the mentality however.
8) It is not cost effective for many specialties to take the military scholarship. It might be for pediatrics or family practice but it is not for the medicine subspecialties, surgery, anesthesia, etc. They could triple your stipend and it still would not be cost effective.
9) It is cost effective to get out of the military after 14-17 years and forfeit retirement benefits of staying in 20 years for many specialties: GI, surgery, anesthesia, nephrology etc.
I actually had a decent time in the military. I was well-trained and worked with some great people and the military catchment patients are superb. HOWEVER.... I was lied to in the recruitment of my scholarship and given a lot of misinformation along the way.
hasta,
