Army HPSP

[LECOM12]

I am in the process of applying to the Army HPSP. I was wondering if anyone has the answers to some of my questions:

What is the liklihood of being deployed to another country during your 4 years of activie duty?

If I were to be deployed, how long does the deployment usually last?

How difficult is it to obtain the residency of your choice? In my case...Derm or FP?

Thank you for any advice given. I will have to make the decision soon.

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[algae]

I recently received an Army HPSP and got answers to some of the questions you asked. It is highly likely that you will be deployed, in fact I'd count on it. I was told there was an 80% chance of being deployed at least once during your 4 yr payback time. I'm not sure how long you'd be deployed for, but I think I remember being told that 10 weeks was average. Not sure though. I was also told that in some specialties (like FP) it is more likely that you'll be deployed.

I don't recall the exact percentage, but you are likely to get within your top 3 picks for FP residency. I don't know about derm.

Good luck - it's a very tough decision.

 

[hosskp1]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by LECOM12:
•I am in the process of applying to the Army HPSP. I was wondering if anyone has the answers to some of my questions:

What is the liklihood of being deployed to another country during your 4 years of activie duty?

If I were to be deployed, how long does the deployment usually last?

How difficult is it to obtain the residency of your choice? In my case...Derm or FP?

Thank you for any advice given. I will have to make the decision soon.•••••Deployment likelihood-- really high. This is your duty as an Officer and physician in the Army. BY refusing deployment you are being derelict in your duties. If you feel any other way- you need to think about another way to finfance your medical school.
You would go for as long as the army needs your services in a praticular area. Many deployments last six months or more-- but you may get extended if there are no replacement units.
Derm vs. FP-- are you a first year? DERM IS ONE OF THE HARDEST RESIDENCIES TO EVER GET. FP is not that hard. MAny great candidates do not match directly into derm spots. they have to do research or a GMO tour and then they get it.

These are not my answers-- these are answers I have gotten from active duty Army Doctors.

HOO-AH

 

[LECOM12]

I do not mind the deployment. However, if you were to have a family, do they get to go with you?

 

[johnM]

Tours of duty vary in length, usually either several months if you are going alone or 2-3 years if you are moving with dependants. Since about 25% of the Army is stationed overseas, you can probably expect that 25% of your time in the army will be the same.

 

[johnM]

btw, I really suggest getting a copy of 'Army Officer's Guide' by Bonn. I am starting at USUHS next year (for Army -- HOO-AH!) and found this to answer so many questions about the military in general. I think it's well worth the $16 on amazon.com.

 

[hosskp1]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by LECOM12:
•I do not mind the deployment. However, if you were to have a family, do they get to go with you?•••••You might be confusing deployments with PCS (permanent change of station).
Deployments mean you will probably not bring your family. Tha happens in times of war or military action. If you were to PCS to another location inside or out of the CONUS, you would probably bring them with you. This means to places like Germany or Hawaii. This is only my understanfing of the situation.

 

[tman]

LECOM,
I think you and john are confusing deployments with Permanent Change of Station (PCS). Deployments are done in support of an ongoing operation or exercises such as Operation Enduring Freedom (Afganistan). Deployments by regulation (at least AF regs) are less than 180 days (unless it is a deployment to fight a war, in which case you may be there for the duration). Families are not allowed to accompany you on these for obvious reasons (you don't want your wife and kids running around in a hostile fire zone). PCS's on the other hand are when you get orders to move to a new assignment/post/base permanently. The gov't pays a moving company to come and pick up your stuff and move it to your new "home", or they will pay you to do it if you prefer and it is within the CONUS (continental U.S.). Nearly all PCS's are accompanied with a few exceptions to remote locations, these are typically much shorter in duration than a typical assignment (usually 12 months as opposed to several years for an accompanied).

Since the Gulf War we have been deployed more than all the years between WWII and the Gulf War combined. We have been doing all these new deployments (i.e. Saudi, Turkey, Panama, Granada, Somolia, South/Central America,Bosnia, Afganistan, Philippines...etc) with an ever decreasing number of people in the military due to cuts in force numbers. This means we are doing much more with much less (something like 1/2 or less the amount of people in the military as we had at the end of the Gulf War). What this means to you is that your likelyhood of being deployed during a 4 year stint in the military is very high, and with the widening war on terrorism that likelyhood is only going to increase since it doesn't seem likely that any of the other ongoing operations are going to go away time soon.

Hope this clears things up a little for you...

 

[UCMonkey]

Just out of curiosity, when you are deployed does anyone know how close they put MD's to the fighting? Take Afghanistan as an example. Would the first MD to see a wounded soldier be in the field, or at the base in Kandahar, etc..?

 

[hosskp1]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Monkeyrunner:
•Just out of curiosity, when you are deployed does anyone know how close they put MD's to the fighting? Take Afghanistan as an example. Would the first MD to see a wounded soldier be in the field, or at the base in Kandahar, etc..?•••••It really depends on how close you want to get. (how close is too close?). Apparently there are billets for physicans that airborne qualified--- which means that they expect you to jump and go to jump school. There are billets for docs who want to be a physican for special operations guys-- these docs probably get pretty close.I have met physicians who have actually done these things and gotten real close. You have to remember with the PROFIS system, you could be called upon to go some where unpleasant if there is a demand.

you also have to remember that even with the Genva convention, Force protection is everyone's job, including the medical corps. The army does not deploy to nice places like Geneva. The Geneva convention might techically protect hospital staff, but some groups might not recognize that. This is a serious business in today's world-- where we have to deal with terrorists. A battalion aid station miles away from "front lines" might be a good target to a terrorist cell. NO matter what-- you have to understand that medical corps guys are both soldiers and physicians. We need to accept some risk to save lives of soldiers.

In real terms though, the first person to see a casualty would be the combat medic and then they would bring the patient to a place with a doctor.

HOO-AH

 

[Kati Tevington]

Hosskp1 wrote:

"NO matter what-- you have to understand that medical corps guys are both soldiers and physicians. We need to accept some risk to save lives of soldiers.

In real terms though, the first person to see a casualty would be the combat medic and then they would bring the patient to a place with a doctor.

HOO-AH"

Good for you! My son Michael will be graduating from Army medic training in a few weeks. He intends to go to college and then medical school eventually, but in the meantime, he may be sent into combat and be "the first person to see a casualty..." and if so, I hope he serves with doctors who think like you do. He knows something about what he's getting into - his father was a Vietnam vet who died not long before I went to medical school (I'm still a resident.)

 

[hosskp1]

the Army medics are tough. They wok really hard to get as good as they are. I would like to say congratulations and lets hope he accomplishes everything he sets out to.

there are some who would say that being a soldier and a doctor are two separate things, that one takes away from the other. I however believe that by being a good soldier, it will help you be a better doctor. Soldiering skills can really help a physician accomplish a great deal even when exhausted. I cose the Army, not for the free money(I could have borroed it easily enough from my parents), but because I thought I found a good fit for me.