Air Force + plastics residency = pipe dream?

[ennuiescence]

Greetings.

Health Professions Scholarship Program recipient here for the Air Force (yes, I am nuts, and yes, they got me).

I used to think that surgeons were impossible to deal with, but I find myself wanting to actually use my hands and physically alter the human body with a therapeutic purpose.

Neurosurgery, as I have heard, just isn't worth pursuing due to the required training commitment and a lifestyle with very little in the way of "me time." (this is important to me).

As you know, the military only allows HPSP students to apply for programs for which they is a need--which may change from year-to-year. I am aware that there will ALWAYS be a need for surgeons in the military, but what about plastic surgeons? Do they even offer this as a residency in other branches? (I will be doing my homework on it for the Air Force in the next few months).

I am not the typical "military" archetype, but I do wish to serve my country in a nice, exotic European/Hawaiian/Asian location in order to pay them back for a scholarship for which I am grateful; however, I have no intention of staying longer than the requisite four years that they will require of me. (I am currently a 2nd year about to start 3rd year).

Questions, comments, or concerns?

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[IceMan0824]

Greetings.

Health Professions Scholarship Program recipient here for the Air Force (yes, I am nuts, and yes, they got me).

I used to think that surgeons were impossible to deal with, but I find myself wanting to actually use my hands and physically alter the human body with a therapeutic purpose.

Neurosurgery, as I have heard, just isn't worth pursuing due to the required training commitment and a lifestyle with very little in the way of "me time." (this is important to me).

As you know, the military only allows HPSP students to apply for programs for which they is a need--which may change from year-to-year. I am aware that there will ALWAYS be a need for surgeons in the military, but what about plastic surgeons? Do they even offer this as a residency in other branches? (I will be doing my homework on it for the Air Force in the next few months).

I am not the typical "military" archetype, but I do wish to serve my country in a nice, exotic European/Hawaiian/Asian location in order to pay them back for a scholarship for which I am grateful; however, I have no intention of staying longer than the requisite four years that they will require of me. (I am currently a 2nd year about to start 3rd year).

Questions, comments, or concerns?

I believe moving this thread to the medical HPSP forum will give you more accurate response to your question.

 

[Miami_med]

Greetings.

Health Professions Scholarship Program recipient here for the Air Force (yes, I am nuts, and yes, they got me).

I used to think that surgeons were impossible to deal with, but I find myself wanting to actually use my hands and physically alter the human body with a therapeutic purpose.

Neurosurgery, as I have heard, just isn't worth pursuing due to the required training commitment and a lifestyle with very little in the way of "me time." (this is important to me).

As you know, the military only allows HPSP students to apply for programs for which they is a need--which may change from year-to-year. I am aware that there will ALWAYS be a need for surgeons in the military, but what about plastic surgeons? Do they even offer this as a residency in other branches? (I will be doing my homework on it for the Air Force in the next few months).

I am not the typical "military" archetype, but I do wish to serve my country in a nice, exotic European/Hawaiian/Asian location in order to pay them back for a scholarship for which I am grateful; however, I have no intention of staying longer than the requisite four years that they will require of me. (I am currently a 2nd year about to start 3rd year).

Questions, comments, or concerns?

If you score a surgery fellowship, you will owe them 5 years.

 

[Tired]

Neurosurgery, as I have heard, just isn't worth pursuing due to the required training commitment and a lifestyle with very little in the way of "me time." (this is important to me).

As you know, the military only allows HPSP students to apply for programs for which they is a need--which may change from year-to-year. I am aware that there will ALWAYS be a need for surgeons in the military, but what about plastic surgeons? Do they even offer this as a residency in other branches? (I will be doing my homework on it for the Air Force in the next few months).

I am not the typical "military" archetype, but I do wish to serve my country in a nice, exotic European/Hawaiian/Asian location in order to pay them back for a scholarship for which I am grateful; however, I have no intention of staying longer than the requisite four years that they will require of me. (I am currently a 2nd year about to start 3rd year).

I'm Navy HPSP. My thoughts:

1) There is no equivalent to the "Integrated Plastics" residency in the military that I am aware of. I know for a fact that it does not exist in the Navy. All Plastics in the Navy are fellowship-trained General Surgeons or Plastics guys who came in after training. I assume the AF is the same.

2) Your payback is more complicated than a straight 4 years. If you take a longer residency, you will incur longer payback. I won't go into details here because everyone else will get bored.

3) Doing a fellowship (like Plastics) will also incur further payback time.

4) Plastics has as brutal a lifestyle as Neurosurg. Especially these days, with the war on.

5) The need for surgical subspecialties in the AF seems anecdotally less than in the Navy and Army. For example, AF trains 4 Orthopods a year. Navy does 11, Army does 18. Better look at the AF match list to see what they're actually putting people in before you get your hopes up.

6) If the current pattern holds, you won't be able to do a civilian residency in the AF.

7) Not sure where you'll get an "exotic" billet in the AF.

I'd suggest you start spending more time reading the old threads on the military medicine forum. It will give you a lot of insight of what you got into and what to expect.

 

[Moravian]

If you think plastic surgery is going to give you more "me" time, you probably should reconsider.

I busted my but in general surgery (inservice scores, research, education, community service) just to get a fellowship and I've been working even harder now that I'm in.

As for what happens after, I have friends that are doing very well but they work very hard. Then there are a few that are doing OK without the extra hours, but they still take call, go in at night at times, and spend their extra time doing business related stuff for their practice.

If you want a high paying job with the "me" time, consider radiology or derm.