Hello all! I received a question regarding some specifics of the Navy program, and thought the response, quoted below, could be useful information....
In the Navy (and the other services as well), it is common, but not required, for docs to take a break in the normal med school-internship-residency progression of training after completing internship to do a GMO (general medical officer) tour. In the US, after internship you become eligible for licensure as a physician. (Most of our civilian counterparts do not get their individual license at this point, and continue residency in a training status.) In the Navy, if you do a GMO tour, you can apply to three different options: GMO (which would be a doc aboard a ship), Undersea (which would be a dive doc), or Flight (which would be a flight surgeon). Although it is an application process, you could almost certainly get flight, so long as you meet the physical requirements for being on flight status - if you have any concern about this, let me know and I'll give you some further guidance.
In any case, after selecting flight, you will go to Pensacola, FL, for a 7-8 month training period. About half of that time you spend studying aerospace medicine as it pertains military aviation. The other half of your time you will do NO medicine, and instead you will enroll at API (aviation preflight indoctrination, otherwise known as ground school) and study aerodynamics, navigation, powerplants/jet engines, and other topics. You will be in class with all of the budding Naval Aviators. After completing API, you will complete survival training, including water survival, ejection seat training, how to parachute safely, how to get picked up by a helicopter from the water, etc. After that, you will check in to one of the VT training squadrons flying the T-6 Texan II, usually for about 4 weeks by the time you do the ground training, operations, and then about 7 flights. After that, you will move over to one of the HT squadrons and do the same thing, but in the TH-57 helicopter. It's cool training, and an amazing experience. You will then graduate and earn your Naval Flight Surgeon Wings, at which point you are a designated Naval Flight Surgeon.
The general path at that point would be to work as a squadron flight surgeon for a 2 year tour. After two years, you have an important choice to make. If the Navy paid for 4 years of med school, at this point you can either do 2 more years as a flight surgeon, then get out and do your civilian residency and say adios to the military (people will mention the 2 year IRR requirement, but I have never seen this be an actual issue preventing anyone from getting out, mainly because when you get out, you are going to residency which is protected), or you could go on to a residency, either in or out of the military, after which you will owe more time. Or, like me, you can do both. I'm in my 4th year being a flight surgeon (absolutely love this job!) but after my two year tour with the Blue Angels, I will be going back to complete an Emergency Medicine residency.
You asked specifically about the type of medicine practiced as a flight surgeon. As a licensed physician, you will be privileged by the local naval hospital to do whichever procedures you are comfortable with. There is a lot of routine sick call, sports medicine, and minor illnesses. You come across the occasional pneumonia, appendicitis, ectopic pregnancy, etc. We don't see much chronic disease like diabetes or COPD. Since I'm going to go into ER, I like procedures, and I've done a lot of suturing, removal of cysts, placing casts or splints, draining knee effusions or doing injections of knees, shoulders, elbows. Obviously, we arent doing any major surgery, but as far as minor surgical procedures, you can do whatever you feel comfortable with. (As a side note, it is very cool to be an independent doc at this point all of your civilian colleagues will be entering their second year of residency, and still will not be practicing as independently as you will be.) When all is said and done, being a flight surgeon is exactly like being a primary care doc for the squadron, with a little bit of specific knowledge related to aviation medicine.
As for the difference between Navy and Air Force training, my understanding is that the Air Force has a much shorter training program for their flight surgeons. They do not go through the same level of flight training like we do in the Navy, and they are usually attached to a clinic instead of to a squadron. They have a couple programs, such as Top Knife II, where they train and fly in F-16s. However, I was able to take this USAF course as an exchange student, and according to my Air Force friends, its easier to go to this Air Force class from the Navy than the Air Force because its so competitive. All that said, there are plenty of benefits to the Air Force program, as well. Obviously Im biased towards the Navy, but either program is amazing, and as much as we like to joke, either the Navy or the Air Force will give you an amazing experience. I know a ton of great Air Force flight docs that are very happy with their decision to go Air Force.
Well, I hope this helps you with your decision making process. Again, if you have any further questions, or if the Blue Angels are coming to do a show near you (check our schedules on our website), let me know, would be happy to discuss in person.
Fly Navy!
Jason
