Ask a USPHS Dentist

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USPHS Dentist

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I haven't found a lot of information about the United States Public Health Service (USPHS or PHS) here on SDN. So I thought I'd post something similar to what's been posted about the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

Is the USPHS part of the military? No, but it is one of the seven uniformed services. We have the same rank structure as the Navy and NOAA (another uniformed service) and all wear almost identical uniforms. We have the same payscale as the military, the same great benefits, and similar bonuses. The PHS is made up of officers only, there are no enlisted. As a new dentist you come in as an O3 (Lieutenant) and get promoted to O4 (Lieutenant Commander) after 4 years, which is similar to the other uniformed services. If you have some experience as a dentist already you can come in at a higher rank than O3. For dental and medical officers there is no promotion board from O3 t0 O4, it is non-competitive (ie. if you meet the very easy requirements you are promoted).

Becoming an officer in the PHS is a little different than the military. You need to 1) get commissioned as an officer and 2) choose a job with one of the government agencies that employs PHS dentists. You can do both concurrently, and you probably should in order to speed up the process.

The PHS dental category is a lot smaller than the other uniformed services' dental corps, currently there are only about 250 dentists working at various government agencies. Right now about half of the dentists in the PHS are in the Indian Health Service (IHS). The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and the US Coast Guard (USCG) come next with about 50 or so each, and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Health Service Corps has about 12. There are also a few positions with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Office of the Secretary (OS) of the Dept of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The full breakdown can be found at http://dcp.psc.gov/ccmis/statuscharts/REPORT_Public_Pivot.aspx by selecting Agency vs. Category. This table shows only how many dentists are in the PHS right now and doesn't include any vacant positions.

I wanted to start by giving a general outline about dentists in the PHS. If you have any questions, please ask!

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Thank you for creating this AMA! This is going to be an amazing thread.
Request to Mods to consider making this a sticky along with the other "Ask a..." threads.

Some questions off the top of my head:

1. Are there USPHS-specific AEGD/specialty programs? For example, the Navy has its own post-graduate school in Bethesda. Does USPHS do something similar?

2. Can one move between the various USPHS subdivisions that you described? So can one start off in the IHS, then move to BOP/USCG?

3. How long is a typical assignment?

4. How competitive is it to receive a commission as a USPHS officer?

5. Does USPHS offer any loan repayment or scholarships for dental school?

6. When does one typically join the USPHS? Is the commissioning done before dental school like for the HPSP? ALSO, does one need to go through something like MEPS (not MEPS obviously since that is for the military) to qualify for USPHS?

7. Are there any officer orientation programs in the USPHS, similar to COT for AF, BOLC for Army, and ODS for Navy?

8. What is the track one needs to follow to be promoted through from O4-> O5 and O5-> O6? For example, Army requires Captain's Career Course. Navy requires tours on ships, being in charge of a clinic, etc. Navy also offers instruction/teaching in Bethesda as a career track.

9. Typically in the active duty military, one takes on more of an administrative role as one gains seniority. Is this the case with the USPHS too?

10. Do USPHS dentists deploy overseas to combat zones?? If so, how long are the deployments for and how frequently do they occur?

11. Why did YOU choose the USPHS out of all the uniformed services? What do you personally believe to be the advantage(s) of a USPHS career over one in active duty military?

Thank you!
 
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Can you transfer your time in service from one branch to another? Say for example, army to USPHS?
 
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Incis0r,

Great questions. First of all, I want to say that I am not an expert on everything PHS, but I will answer everything to the best of my ability. Hopefully people who know more can chime in if I don't know the answer to something. I'll try to include links to more information where I can. Here are my answers to some of your questions:

1. Are there USPHS-specific AEGD/specialty programs? For example, the Navy has its own post-graduate school in Bethesda. Does USPHS do something similar?

The IHS has their own 2-year AGPR and Pediatric residencies in Anchorage, AK. The USCG sends officers to the Navy to be trained as exodontists (needed at Cape May, the recruit training center) and comprehensive dentists (2-year AEGD at the Naval Postgraduate Dental School in Bethesda). There are also public health residencies with the NIH and CDC. The CDC also offers a 2-year fellowship/on the job training in epidemiology that is available to PHS dentists. When other specialists are needed agencies can either hired them directly or select a PHS officer to train at a dental school residency program.

2. Can one move between the various USPHS subdivisions that you described? So can one start of in the IHS, then move to BOP/USCG?

Yes, people switch agencies all of the time. Each agency has its own criteria for officers that they will accept, some may be more selective than others. Right now I know that there are positions available the IHS, BOP and USCG. These can be filled by new PHS officers or from current PHS officers in other agencies.
3. How long is a typical assignment?

Some agencies are more strict than others on how long you can stay at one location. For instance, the USCG generally limits assignments to 5 years, except for sites in Alaska and Puerto Rico, which are 3 or 4 years. Other agencies are more flexible and you may be able to spend your whole career in one location.

4. How competitive is it to receive a commission as a USPHS officer?

To be honest, I'm not sure, but I don't think it is too difficult. I know we are currently looking to hire dentists. I think there might be a minimum GPA of 2.5 or 2.8, but I would talk to a recruiter to be sure (800-279-1605). The list of basic requirements for a commission are at http://usphs.gov/profession/dentist/requirements.aspx.

5. Does USPHS offer any loan repayment or scholarships for dental school?

Yes, the IHS offers $40k loan repayment/2 yr commitment; it can be taken every 2 years until the loans are paid off. More info can be found at: https://www.ihs.gov/loanrepayment/

The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) also offers loan repayment: $50k/2 yr commitment at a NHSC-approved site and it can also be taken every 2 years until the loans are paid off. There are many NHSC-approved sites with the IHS and BOP (HPSA scores >14) that you can work at as a PHS officer and be eligible (http://nhsc.hrsa.gov/loanrepayment/index.html).

The NHSC also offers a scholarship which covers dental school tuition, fees and provides a monthly stipend, a lot like the HPSP for the military. I'm sure you've probably heard of this. What you might not know is that you can get commissioned as a PHS officer and pay back your obligation at one of the NHSC-approved sites in the IHS or BOP. More info is at https://nhsc.hrsa.gov/scholarships/.

6. When does one typically join the USPHS? Is the commissioning done before dental school like for the HPSP? ALSO, does one need to go through something like MEPS (not MEPS obviously since that is for the military) to qualify for USPHS?

Commissioning is done after you graduate from dental school. There are some age limitations for older dentists, but waivers may be available (see http://usphs.gov/profession/dentist/requirements.aspx). As a part of the commissioning process you have to get a medical exam. The PHS will send you a medical form, you bring it to your doctor to fill out, and then you send it back to the PHS. There is also a security form you have to fill out, similar to the military.

7. Are there any officer orientation programs in the USPHS, similar to COT for AF, BOLC for Army, and ODS for Navy?

All new PHS officers attend Officer Basic Course (OBC), and there is an Officer Mid-Level Course (OMC) for mid-career officers. The PHS is currently developing the curriculum for an Officer Advanced Course and Officer Executive Course for higher level officers.

That's about all the time I have for tonight, I will try to get to your other questions tomorrow. Thanks for all of your great questions!
 
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Can you transfer your time in service from one branch to another? Say for example, army to USPHS?

Yes, a lot of PHS officers come from the Army, Navy, or Air Force. The requirements (http://usphs.gov/profession/dentist/requirements.aspx) say that you have to have less than 8 years of prior active duty service in one of the other uniformed services. But there are waivers available and I know of dentists who have successfully transferred over with more than 8 years.

I also know of some military HPSP scholars who got the rest of their IRR obligation (HPSP = 4 years AD obligation and 4 years IRR obligation) waived for coming back into active duty service with the PHS, though I don't know if I would count on that happening.
 
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Thanks for sharing this info. I think PHS gets overlooked quite a bit. Maybe they should give the PHS it's own forum.
 
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Hi Incis0r,

Here are the answers to the rest of your questions:

8. What is the track one needs to follow to be promoted through from O4-> O5 and O5-> O6? For example, Army requires Captain's Career Course. Navy requires tours on ships, being in charge of a clinic, etc. Navy also offers instruction/teaching in Bethesda as a career track.

There are many ways to go from O4 -> O5 -> O6. There aren't defined paths or career tracks like there are in some branches of the military. Every year the PHS issues promotion benchmarks and they are used by the promotion boards to evaluate all the officers eligible for promotion. Here are the latest benchmarks to get a feeling for what the promotion boards are looking for: https://dcp.psc.gov/ccmis/PDF_docs/2016 DENTAL Benchmarks - Final.pdf.

In the PHS each officer has both a temporary grade and a permanent grade. The promotion benchmarks list the benchmarks for both temporary grade and permanent grade promotion. For example, under the column "T-O5/P-O4" are the benchmarks for promotion to both temporary grade O5 and permanent grade O4. The temporary grade determines what rank you wear on your uniform, how much you get paid and how much you are paid for retirement. Permanent grade is kind of an outdated concept and isn't really used. I was told that all the military branches used to have both temporary and permanent grades, but they decided to get rid of the temporary grade. The USPHS seems to have held on to it for some reason. I'm sure there is someone out there who could explain why we still have it, but I'm not sure why.

9. Typically in the active duty military, one takes on more of an administrative role as one gains seniority. Is this the case with the USPHS too?

Yes, that is generally true in the PHS as well. But, there are some non-clinical positions available at every rank. In fact, you can even take a non-dental job in DC at the PHS Commissioned Corps HQ to help keep the organization functioning. Like the military, if you are in a non-clinical position then you have to do a certain number of hours of clinical dentistry each year to be eligible for the extra pays that dentists receive.

10. Do USPHS dentists deploy overseas to combat zones?? If so, how long are the deployments for and how frequently do they occur?

No, not typically. The exception is when the PHS is called upon in times of war, which hasn't happened very recently. Here is a little history of when the PHS has been called to serve in a combat zone: https://lhncbc.nlm.nih.gov/files/archive/pub2001060.pdf.

The PHS does deploy officers to national emergencies (eg. Katrina, 9/11 and Hurricane Sandy) and international emergencies (eg. Haitian earthquake in 2010 and Ebola outbreak: http://dcp.psc.gov/ccmis/features/FEATURE_ebola_response_m.aspx). Deployments are typically short and don't occur very often. From what I've heard and seen they usually range from a week or two, up to 2-3 months. Some PHS officers can't deploy because they are in what's called critical fill billets (eg. all USCG officers). In my PHS career I've only deployed once, for 6 weeks. I wasn't told I had to go, I decided to volunteer because I thought it would be a rewarding experience (which it was). I only know of one dentist who deployed to Liberia to treat ebola victims, and he also decided to volunteer. In fact all of the 200 PHS officers who deployed to treat ebola victims were volunteers. If you want to make a difference, the PHS will give you the opportunity.

11. Why did YOU choose the USPHS out of all the uniformed services? What do you personally believe to be the advantage(s) of a USPHS career over one in active duty military?

One thing that the PHS offers that's different is the ability to transfer from one agency to another. If you decide your not happy doing what your doing or you start getting bored, you can always switch to another agency or go to work in DC in a non-clinical job at the Commissioned Corps Headquarters. There are lots of opportunities to jump around and to serve at unique locations across the United States. The variety of locations could also make it easier to find a position that is close to your home and family, depending on where you live. As parents age this can become more of a concern.

I think culturally the PHS may be a little more laid back than some of what I've seen of the military. But that is just what I've experienced. I'm sure there are probably some really hard-core PHS officers out there somewhere and I know for sure that there are laid back officers in the military too. I've met great officers in all of the services.

If you're not interested in deploying, then the PHS may be a better fit. In my experience PHS officers are volunteering for deployments, not being told they have to go. But even when you do deploy it is usually to help people that have been through a catastrophe and it isn't for months on end. Less time deployed means more time to spend with your family, which may not be as important when you are young, single and just graduating from dental school, but it becomes very important when you are married and have kids who you don't want to be away from for long.

One thing I don't think a lot of people know about is that PHS officers are credited for their 4 years of dental school at retirement. When you hit 20 years and are eligible for retirement and a pension, instead of receiving 50% of your high 3 years of base pay you get 60% (4 years x 2.5%/yr). The multiplier keeps increasing 2.5%/yr up to year 26 and then stays at 75% until year 30. So if you plan on staying the full 30 years there would be no difference between the military and the PHS. If you are a little older when you join, then that extra 10% at 20 years could be a big incentive to consider the PHS.

All of the above are good reasons to choose the PHS, but I think the most important thing we offer is the opportunity to serve and to be a part of something bigger than yourself. There is camaraderie and the chance to really give back something. And when there's a catastrophe and people need you most, you are there helping them.
 
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Thanks for sharing this info. I think PHS gets overlooked quite a bit. Maybe they should give the PHS it's own forum.
You're welcome. I think nobody really knows much about the PHS, which is why I thought I'd try to put some information out there. For instance, I don't think many dental students and predental students realize that you can get dental school paid for with the PHS, just like you can with the military, you just have to do it in a more circuitous route using the NHSC Scholarship.
 
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@USPHS Dentist , thank you so much for sharing all of this information. It is deeply appreciated.

I'll admit- I had never given much attention to the USPHS before. But after the way you described and presented it just now, I am strongly considering it as a career option, and am conducting more research on it.

Thank you for taking the time out of your day to come and speak about your job. It sounds like you're in an amazing position and really enjoy your work.
 
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I'm curious if the 2 yr AEGD from other branches is considered a specialty in PHS and also eligible for $50K a yr bonus?
 
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Thanks for starting this thread, it will be a great resource in this section. Are there any endodontists in the USPHS?
 
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Just curious about what agency or agencies you've been detailed to and how have they been?

Does any one particular agency hold more sway over the USPHS than the others?

What is the procedure mix like across the agencies? and also materials/equipment/labs/staff etc.

Also you said promotion from O-3 to O-4 is noncompetitive and requires 5 years, just curious what if you have prior military service (non-dental related)?

Major thanks for sharing, I've been contemplating commissioned corps every since my pre-dent days and I'm seriously considering taking the plunge!
 
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@USPHS Dentist , thank you so much for sharing all of this information. It is deeply appreciated.

I'll admit- I had never given much attention to the USPHS before. But after the way you described and presented it just now, I am strongly considering it as a career option, and am conducting more research on it.

Thank you for taking the time out of your day to come and speak about your job. It sounds like you're in an amazing position and really enjoy your work.

I'm happy to share. I remember when I first came into the PHS after private practice, I just felt so fortunate every day. I guess that feeling has kind of faded now, but I still love my job and what I do. I hope you're able to find the career that's perfect for you.
 
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I'm curious if the 2 yr AEGD from other branches is considered a specialty in PHS and also eligible for $50K a yr bonus?

Yes, any 2-year AEGD or AGPR is considered a specialty in the PHS, just like it is in the military. You are eligible for a $40k/yr bonus, but they are considering bumping it up to bring it inline with the DoD.

I don't know a lot about this, but I've heard that military residents aren't eligible to receive the bonus until after they paid back their training obligations (2 years?). I do know that PHS officers are eligible for the bonus as soon as the graduate from the program. Maybe that sorta makes up a little for getting a little less $ per year. In both the PHS and military I think there is a 8 year AD service minimum before you're eligible for the bonus. So, if you do your training early enough in your military career you might be able to get the bonus as soon as you hit the 8 yr mark. I would ask a military comp dentist to be sure.
 
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Thanks for starting this thread, it will be a great resource in this section. Are there any endodontists in the USPHS?

I'm glad to do it, I hope to get the word out about the PHS so more dentists consider joining. We have a lot of senior dentists who are going to be retiring soon and we need to find to find good, young dentists willing to take their place.

There are endodontists in the PHS. I know of two off the top of my head, although there are probably more. If an agency needs an endodontist they will ask for applicants and select a PHS officer to get trained at one of the endo programs.
 
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Just curious about what agency or agencies you've been detailed to and how have they been?

I have spent my whole PHS career with the USCG. I have been very happy working for them and haven't had a reason to look at working in another agency yet. I'll try and see if I can convince some other PHS dentists to post about their experience working for the other agencies.

Does any one particular agency hold more sway over the USPHS than the others?

No, at least not that I'm aware of.

What is the procedure mix like across the agencies? and also materials/equipment/labs/staff etc.

The USCG employs mostly PHS dentists with only a few contract dentists. Hygienists and dental assistants are contracted, and there are USCG enlisted personnel who also assist. The patient population is similar to the military, meaning generally young and healthy. Keeping Coasties ready to do their jobs is our primary goal. For the typical general dentist this involves a lot of annual exams and operative, although there are crowns, occasional bridges, and other procedures as well. We use one contract laboratory and FedEx our cases there - they are a good lab in my opinion. It usually takes about 3-4 wks to get crowns back. We use all the latest materials, except CEREC. Complex cases can be referred out to civilian or military specialists. The USCG uses the same insurance contract as the military and most everything is covered at no charge to the patient (orthodontics is usually not approved except for special circumstances). Like the military, you have to be credentialed in the types of procedures you can do. Basically you have to be able to show that you've been trained to do things like CTGs or impacted 3rd molar extractions and get credentialed before you can do those types of procedures. Every dentist will be credentialed in the basic bread and butter procedures.

Unfortunately, I don't know enough about the other agencies to comment intelligently, so hopefully someone will speak up or I can find other PHS officers to post about them.

Also you said promotion from O-3 to O-4 is noncompetitive and requires 5 years, just curious what if you have prior military service (non-dental related)?

Time as a civilian dentist can count towards promotion, but prior non-dental military service doesn't. However, prior military service will bring you that much closer to being vested in the 20 year military pension.

Calculating your rank and when you are eligible to promote can be confusing. The PHS has something called Training and Experience (T&E) credit. You get 4 years of credit for undergrad and 4 years of credit for dental school, so every dentist starts with 8 years of T&E. Take a look at this table that shows the criteria for promotion: http://dcp.psc.gov/ccmis/PDF_docs/PY2016 Cheatsheet.pdf. I misspoke earlier: LCDR requires 12 years of of T&E, which means that 4 more years of training or experience as a dentist is required to be eligible, not 5 (I'll go back and edit my previous post). The training or experience doesn't have to be in the PHS or in the military, it can be as a civilian.

Time as a civilian dentist also counts when calculating base pay. So, if you have been a civilian dentist for 3 years, you would be paid as a LT with 3 years instead of one with 0 years of experience. Your prior non-dental military time might count here too, I'm not 100% sure how this is calculated.

Major thanks for sharing, I've been contemplating commissioned corps every since my pre-dent days and I'm seriously considering taking the plunge!

You're welcome. Be aware that the application and commissioning can take a long time (months). If you do decide to apply make sure you are simultaneously talking to the agency you want to work for in order to get a job lined up with them while the application is being processed. Let me know if you have any more questions, I'd be happy to answer any more you have!
 
I have spent my whole PHS career with the USCG. I have been very happy working for them and haven't had a reason to look at working in another agency yet. I'll try and see if I can convince some other PHS dentists to post about their experience working for the other agencies.

Do you ever get to go on the USCG ships/helicopters etc.? Or are you limited to working in their bases only?

In my PHS career I've only deployed once, for 6 weeks. I wasn't told I had to go, I decided to volunteer because I thought it would be a rewarding experience (which it was).

Would you mind sharing a bit about your experience while deployed? What was the mission/where did you deploy to?

If I want to have the greatest opportunity to deploy, what agency would you recommend applying to?
 
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I haven't found a lot of information about the United States Public Health Service (USPHS or PHS) here on SDN. So I thought I'd post something similar to what's been posted about the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

Is the USPHS part of the military? No, but it is one of the seven uniformed services. We have the same rank structure as the Navy and NOAA (another uniformed service) and all wear almost identical uniforms. We have the same payscale as the military, the same great benefits, and similar bonuses. The PHS is made up of officers only, there are no enlisted. As a new dentist you come in as an O3 (Lieutenant) and get promoted to O4 (Lieutenant Commander) after 4 years, which is similar to the other uniformed services. If you have some experience as a dentist already you can come in at a higher rank than O3. For dental and medical officers there is no promotion board from O3 t0 O4, it is non-competitive (ie. if you meet the very easy requirements you are promoted).

Becoming an officer in the PHS is a little different than the military. You need to 1) get commissioned as an officer and 2) choose a job with one of the government agencies that employs PHS dentists. You can do both concurrently, and you probably should in order to speed up the process.

The PHS dental category is a lot smaller than the other uniformed services' dental corps, currently there are only about 250 dentists working at various government agencies. Right now about half of the dentists in the PHS are in the Indian Health Service (IHS). The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and the US Coast Guard (USCG) come next with about 50 or so each, and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Health Service Corps has about 12. There are also a few positions with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Office of the Secretary (OS) of the Dept of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The full breakdown can be found at http://dcp.psc.gov/ccmis/statuscharts/REPORT_Public_Pivot.aspx by selecting Agency vs. Category. This table shows only how many dentists are in the PHS right now and doesn't include any vacant positions.

I wanted to start by giving a general outline about dentists in the PHS. If you have any questions, please ask!


Such a helpful post, I am sending you a code for a $10 amazon gift card. Enjoy!
 
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As a new dentist you come in as an O3 (Lieutenant) and get promoted to O4 (Lieutenant Commander) after 4 years, which is similar to the other uniformed services. If you have some experience as a dentist already you can come in at a higher rank than O3. For dental and medical officers there is no promotion board from O3 t0 O4, it is non-competitive (ie. if you meet the very easy requirements you are promoted).

Only 4 years from O3 to O4? It takes 6 years in the Army.
 
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Do you ever get to go on the USCG ships/helicopters etc.? Or are you limited to working in their bases only?

Hi Incis0r, you can ask to go take a tour of a ship or a take a flight on one of the helicopters, but there aren't any dentists assigned to ships like there are in the Navy. The CG ships have too few personnel to make it worthwhile I guess. Dentists are limited to working at bases only. Very rarely do they ask for volunteers to deploy on of the ships, and typically they are looking for a PA or medical officer.

Would you mind sharing a bit about your experience while deployed? What was the mission/where did you deploy to?

I deployed through the USCG on a US Navy mission to Central America on one of their hospital ships, the USNS Comfort. A PHS physician, PA, and I, along with two USCG corpsmen, flew into Guatemala to join the ship for 6 weeks out of their 6 month mission. There were a lot of dentist volunteers from countries all over the world there, mostly military, although some were civilian. There were military and civilian hygienists and dental assistants too. It was a great environment. We lived onboard the ship and would take buses to the mission sites where we'd set up mobile dental units. A couple of dentists would do a quick treatment plan and then the patients would either get a cleaning, fillings, or some teeth extracted. I don't get many opportunities to take out teeth in the CG so this was a fun experience that I really enjoyed. We would also send some patients back to the ship for more extensive oral surgery, RCTs, CEREC, etc. There was a lot more being done at each site besides dentistry: optometry, radiology, preventive medicine, public health training, etc. We spent about 2 weeks in Guatemala, then went to El Salvador and then to Costa Rica. Because there were a lot of dentists working we didn't go out every day. On your days off you could sign up for MWR trips to do something fun and explore the country you were in. While we were on route between countries the Comfort was resupplied by a Military Sealift Command (MSC) ship. They steamed alongside to refuel us and passed crates full of supplies from one ship to the other along cables strung between them. We also had a helo flying back and forth dropping off crates. Pretty cool to watch. The whole mission was a great experience, I met a lot of nice people and we made a difference by helping folks who might not have received care otherwise.

This year I'm going to volunteer to do a mission of mercy here in the US to help people who can't afford dental care.

If I want to have the greatest opportunity to deploy, what agency would you recommend applying to?

I don't know for sure, but I would guess the IHS. I know they are doing a lot of missions to remote areas across Alaska that don't have any dentists. As long you're in a position that isn't considered "mission critical," you can volunteer from any agency to deploy in national or international crises that the PHS responds to. Everyone who isn't in a mission critical position is assigned to an emergency response team. Most officers are in Tier 3, which is more of a reserve team used to support Tier 1 and 2. This link helps explain how the response teams are set up: https://dcp.psc.gov/osg/apaoc/documents/PHS_Response_Teams.pdf. Since I am in the CG and all PHS officers assigned to the CG are considered mission critical, I don't have direct experience in how this all works. I am going to talk to some other PHS officers this week so hopefully someone with more knowledge can elaborate if needed!
 
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Yes. I think the Navy is typically 5 years to O4.

Wow it sounds like PHS has all of the perks (or more) of wearing the uniform, minus the drawbacks of actually being in the military.
 
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I am a 3rd year dental student and looking into the Coast Guard and had a few questions.

1. How much say do you have in which base you work at?
2. Are there any loan repayment options in the USCG? If not how are new grads able to pay off loans with the USPHS salary?
3. What type of dentistry do you do in the USCG? Do you have much autonomy in performing the dentistry of your choosing?

Thanks!
 
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I wanted to post something about some opportunities in the PHS that are available to dental students. Students between their 3rd and 4th years of dental school can apply to dental externship programs at the IHS and BOP.

The IHS externship would give you a chance to work in the IHS, gain experience practicing dentistry and see if working in the IHS is something you would be interested in. Externships are at various IHS locations across the US and last for a minimum of 2 weeks running from May 1 to Sep 30. It covers travel and lodging as well as providing a small allowance for daily expenses. More info can be found at https://www.ihs.gov/dentistry/dentalexternships/.

The BOP externship is part of the Senior Commissioned Officer Student Training and Extern Program (SRCOSTEP). You attend school as normal for your last year, but are commissioned and paid as an Ensign. Your pay includes base pay, basic allowance for housing (BAH), and basic allowance for subsistence (BAS). Both BAH and BAS are tax free allowances. The externship also includes full health insurance for you and your immediate family under TRICARE. In return you agree to serve in the PHS with the BOP for twice the length of the time that you're in the program. If you're in the program for 1 year, then your payback is 2 years.

The BOP also has a Student Volunteer Program described here: https://www.bop.gov/jobs/students.jsp, but I don't know any details about it. This might be a good way to see what it would be like working with the BOP.

There is also the Junior Commissioned Officer Student Training and Extern Program (JRCOSTEP) described here (http://www.usphs.gov/student/jrcostep.aspx). It sounds like a good deal, but I'm not sure if any of the agencies are offering this for dental. Hopefully if someone knows they will speak up.
 
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1. How much say do you have in which base you work at?

Hi jmer44, thank you for your questions. To answer the first one, you get to list your top choices but ultimately it is up to the Coast Guard. When you first come in there may not be a choice and you may have to take what is available. Since there are only about 50 dentists in the CG and each tour of duty is about 5 years, that means about 10 dentists are transferring each year. Of those 10 or so duty stations, some positions may not be a good fit (eg. if you are a new LT you won't be running a large clinic). So sometimes choices can be limited. If the choices aren't very appealing or you really like where you're at, you can ask to extend for a year at your current duty station. Personally, I don't think that any of the duty locations are that bad, they all have something interesting to offer. I've always tried to make the best of wherever I've been stationed.

2. Are there any loan repayment options in the USCG? If not how are new grads able to pay off loans with the USPHS salary?

Unfortunately, there are not any loan repayment options for the CG that I'm aware of, but there is a $75,000 sign on bonus. If you have a lot of loans it might be best to start with one of the other agencies that have a loan repayment program. Once your loans are paid off or your salary has built up enough that you can pay off the rest comfortably, you could look at transferring to the CG if you still wanted to.

3. What type of dentistry do you do in the USCG? Do you have much autonomy in performing the dentistry of your choosing?

I spend a good portion of my time doing annual exams and operative, but there's time to do other treatment as well. Because I have a full schedule I am able to choose what procedures I want to do. If I didn't have enough work to keep me busy then it probably wouldn't make sense for me to refer things out that I was credentialed in. If you're not credentialed in something then you have to refer it out regardless.
 
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I want to share more information about working in the other agencies and I'm still trying to get some other folks to post about their experiences. While I don't have any direct experience working in the IHS, here are a couple of links to articles about people who do. Both are pediatric dentists and the second one is in the USPHS.

https://www.ihs.gov/dentistry/progr...educates-advocates-for-children-and-families/

https://www.ihs.gov/dentistry/programresources/newsletters/he-sought-adventure-and-found-a-calling/
 
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@USPHS Dentist, thank you for doing this. I think PHS dentistry is a very underadvertised option, so your knowledge has been a big eye opener for me.

Since you've been working with the Coast Guard, can you speak to the availability for USPHS opportunities with the department? I went to USAJOBS under the DHS and couldn't find any openings. Made me curious how difficult it is to break into that department. I'm currently AD (EAS and start D School this fall) and the concept of continuing my service in an org that minimizes relocations/deployments seems very attractive, but the locations available through the IHS and the scope of practice for the BOP put me off.
 
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Hi CraigHack,

Thanks for your question! I'm glad to see I'm making more people aware of what the PHS has to offer. I think it is a great organization and I'm happy to share what I know.

Right now there are 5-6 positions available for dentists in the USCG. The number varies every year, but in my experience there are typically only 2-3 openings. A lot of officers are getting close to retirement so this number will likely stay high for the next few years. Unfortunately, the USCG doesn't list their dental jobs anywhere yet, although this might change soon. To find out what's available you need to speak with the Chief Dental Officer, who is currently CAPT Dave Lundahl - he is a super nice guy and very easy to talk to. His contact info (and the contact info of future CDOs) can be found here: http://www.uscg.mil/dentist/.

I know what you mean about relocations and deployments, this is what first attracted me to the PHS. I used to be in the military too, and I was tired of moving so frequently and being deployed away from my family. The USCG was the agency in the PHS that seemed closest to what I was used to. But, I wouldn't write off the IHS or BOP, they are both good organizations that have a lot to offer. I know dentists who've worked in both the USCG and IHS or BOP and some prefer those agencies over USCG. From what I've heard each agency has their pluses and minuses.
 
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Incis0r, I was in the Navy. I enjoyed my time and met a lot of great people, but the PHS and public health dentistry has been a better fit for me.
 
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I wanted to share that I've heard from a reliable source that HRSA is planning on expanding their NHSC Students to Service program to include 4th year dental students. The program provides $120,000 in loan repayment to 4th year dental students in exchange for a 3 year commitment at an approved NHSC site. Many BOP and IHS locations are approved NHSC sites, so your commitment could be fulfilled as a PHS officer. HRSA is planning on allowing 4th year dental students to apply in 2017.

More info on the current Students to Service program can be found here: http://www.nhsc.hrsa.gov/loanrepayment/studentstoserviceprogram/
 
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Can you speak about the opportunities that Medical Students or Physicians have in the USPHS.The USPHS seems like the perfect opportunity for fulfilling my desire to serve my country as a healthcare professional. With that being said.....

Do you have any contact information for current physicians in the USPHS? Do you know if you have to complete a residency before commissioning? (Basically the questions you have been receiving from dental students but for medical students)

Thanks for your time!
 
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Do you have any contact information for current physicians in the USPHS? Do you know if you have to complete a residency before commissioning? (Basically the questions you have been receiving from dental students but for medical students)

Here are a couple of physicians in the USPHS who said they'd be happy to answer your questions:

CAPT Ha C Tang, DO
[email protected]

CDR Sara Luckhaupt, MD, MPH
[email protected]
513-841-4123

They said that yes, you have to complete a residency so that you can get your license before commissioning in the USPHS as a physician. Having residency training beyond the one year internship would probably be better. But, it'd be best to talk to them to get the full story.
 
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Thanks so much "ελπίδα" and "USPHS Dentist" for bringing this excellent forum to our attention!

I am part of a group of USPHS physicians (with CAPT Tang and CDR Luckhaupt mentioned above) who are trying to extend our outreach to interested students, residents, and physicians such as yourselves. So, SDN's "USPHS Physician" is born!...and he's most honored and pleased to represent and assist USPHS Dentist in answering your questions.

So, to answer "ελπίδα",
USPHS physician opportunities:
There really are enough different opportunities within the USPHS to suit almost any specialty and inclination - primary care or specialty, research or clinical, domestic or abroad. In addition to our very fulfilling day-to-day work, we are proud to have also quietly but effectively served on the front lines through our emergency response force in the major public health emergencies of modern times, such as hurricane Katrina, the Haitian earthquake, tsunamis, and the Ebola crisis.

Check out http://usphs.gov/aboutus/agencies/dutystationmap.aspx , select "Physician" for Discipline, and then click Submit Selection. Then zoom out to see not only U.S. sites, but duty stations all over the world.

Medical students can actually participate in a sort of internship program within USPHS through Jr. or Sr. COSTEP, see http://www.usphs.gov/student/jrcostep.aspx

Training requirements:
Any licensed physician is qualified to join the USPHS. Technically, those with only one year of internship training are qualified to join. However, the medical appointment board is generally very tough on those without residency training as few agencies are able to employ these candidates. Residency training of any specialty is a must, practically speaking.

Allow me to go on . . .
Loan Repayment:
I'd also like to highlight that there is actually a very good potential for loan repayment in many of our higher need clinical sites with higher Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) scores in several of our agencies, including the Indian Heath Service (IHS), Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Immigration Health Services Corps (IHSC) and National Health Service Corps (NHSC). Additionally, the IHS has it's own loan repayment program for it's site, state programs may apply (for example, California's State Loan Repayment Program), and USPHS physicians are eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.

Pay/benefits:
So, while we believe the desire to join the USPHS (or one of our sister services) needs to come from deep within, our Service strives to keep overall pay and benefits on par with our military and civilian counterparts. Some of the major financial benefits include potentially taking advantage of such loan repayment programs; a large chunk of one's pay is tax free (housing allowance, etc.); the GI bill can cover most/all of a child's college; health care & dental for you and your family has minimal expense; retirement benefits are very hard to beat; and malpractice insurance is essentially a non-issue with FTCA coverage.

Looking forward to answering more questions.
Thank you.
 
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@USPHS Physician

Could you give some more information pertaining to JRCOSTEP and SRCOSTEP as a medical student? I tried searching the forum, and it's mostly said in passing but no real information, and I'm not getting the information I'm searching for from the website, and there is some confusing information...

For instance, it is mentioned above that you do not commission until you complete residency, but also listed that you commission in 4th year of school with SRCOSTEP as an ENS. While looking at testimonials listed on the site, people are titled with ENS for both SRCOSTEP and JRCOSTEP. It also mentions that one would receive pay for both JR and SR COSTEP.

Could you clarify for me a little of this process/timeline, and when one would commission, be it as a medical students, resident, or attending?

Thank you!
 
I was PM'd a series of questions that I wanted to answer on this thread in case anyone else was wondering the same things.

Is the average starting pay for a newly commissioned USPHS dentist ~$90K USD, including BAH + BAS + all incentive pays?


I've never seen an average starting pay number for the PHS. Probably because it is difficult to determine starting pay for any of the services because there are a lot of variables to consider: location, dependents, prior service, specialty, board certification, etc. But you can get an idea of starting pay by plugging in your specific details and adding them up. The pay for dentists in all of the uniformed services are similar. The PHS gets paid less than the DoD for some specialties, but maybe makes up for it by getting more at retirement.

Remember that BAH and BAS are tax free, and some states don't tax income of their residents who are serving out of state. The uniformed services provide full medical coverage for you and your family at no cost through TRICARE, which I've seen estimated as being worth about $17k. Also, there is no malpractice insurance to pay. You get 30 days of vacation, 10 holidays/yr, maternity leave, paternity leave, adoption leave, house hunting leave, etc. And there is the Post 9/11 GI Bill that provides 4 yrs of tuition and benefits for you, your spouse, or children.

The uniformed services retirement plan/pension is incredible. Go to this website to get an idea of what the retirement plan is worth: http://militarypay.defense.gov/Calculators/RMCCalculator.aspx. Remember to add 4 years because PHS officers receive credit for dental school (ie. retiring at minimum of 20 yrs = 24 yrs for calculating pension). Those who come on active duty prior to 2018 can choose the "old" retirement plan. If you come on AD after 2018 you will be enrolled in the new, blended retirement plan.

In your AMA thread, you mentioned that specific agencies send residents to be trained with other services...such as the USCG sending dentists to be trained at the 2 yr AEGD at the Navy postgraduate dental school- how hard is it to get chosen for these residencies?

It is difficult to say because it depends on how many people apply that year and how your application compares to theirs. FYI, the USCG isn’t currently sending residents to the Navy, but hopefully that will happen again in the future.

Do you need to have done an AEGD to get into the USPHS/the individual agencies?


No, but if you do a 2-year AEGD/AGPR you will be eligible for specialty pay ($40k/yr with 4 yr contract - this is $50k/yr in DoD). Unfortunately a 1-year AEGD/AGPR doesn’t count.​

If I decide that I like a different specialty....such as Endo, Oral Surgery, Pedo, etc.- how would I go about specializing in that? Do I leave the USPHS and use the GI bill? (I assume PHS gets the GI bill as well, right?)?


You do get the Post 9/11 GI Bill as a PHS officer. Like the other services there are rules on when you are eligible to use the GI Bill. I don’t know them off the top of my head, but you may have to wait a few years before you can use the benefits. You could leave the PHS, get trained, and then try to come back, although I don’t know anyone who has done this. You could always look to see if other agencies are looking to train residents. For example, currently the IHS is looking for someone to train in a pedo residency and I could apply from the CG if I wanted to. I think the military services have more opportunities for specialty training.​

Pension/retirement- I have heard rumblings that the PHS pension is not as secure as military pensions since the PHS basically has to fight Congress for its budget each year...any truth to this? BTW, is the pension 40% of your base pay @ 20 yrs, or 50%?? I know Congress lowered it for the Army/Navy/Air Force.


I’ve never heard that the PHS pension is not as secure or seen anything to make me think that it wasn’t. The retirement system is the same for all uniformed services, with one difference: PHS dentists and physicians get 4 years of credit for dental/medical school after reaching 20 years of service. Physicians get another year of credit for their internship, so 5 years total (dentists +10%, physicians + 12.5%). Not sure how this plays out with the new retirement system for those who join after 1 January 2018.​

Can one moonlight on weekends while a PHS officer?

Yes. In the CG you need to fill out some paperwork and get approval.​

Does one get access to TSP as a USPHS officer?

Yes.​

Is there an online tool I can use to find approved BOP/IHS sites that a PHS officer can serve at while receiving NHSC loan repayment? I know the NHSC has a JobsCenter but that is mostly for community health centers

Yes, the PHS has a dental vacancy database on this website that shows current openings for dentists in the USPHS. It also lists the sites NHSC score, where available, to help determine NHSC eligibility: https://dcp.psc.gov/osg/dentist/recruitment.aspx.​

I've heard IHS dentists are quite unhappy since the patients tend to be extremely demanding and unhappy- any word on this?

No, I haven’t heard this, though it may be true. The IHS dentists I've talked to seem to like their jobs. If they didn't I guess they could try switching agencies to one they liked better.​

At the same time, I've heard BOP prisons are very happy and enjoy their work since patients are very appreciative- any word on this?

I've heard this too. I've had more than one BOP dentist tell me their patients really appreciate what they do for them. A lot of inmates come from disadvantaged backgrounds and have never had regular dental care.​
 
@USPHS Physician

Could you give some more information pertaining to JRCOSTEP and SRCOSTEP as a medical student? I tried searching the forum, and it's mostly said in passing but no real information, and I'm not getting the information I'm searching for from the website, and there is some confusing information...

For instance, it is mentioned above that you do not commission until you complete residency, but also listed that you commission in 4th year of school with SRCOSTEP as an ENS. While looking at testimonials listed on the site, people are titled with ENS for both SRCOSTEP and JRCOSTEP. It also mentions that one would receive pay for both JR and SR COSTEP.

Could you clarify for me a little of this process/timeline, and when one would commission, be it as a medical students, resident, or attending?

Thank you!
Hi, MusicDoc,
So sorry for the delay responding.
The best place to learn more about the COSTEP programs is http://www.usphs.gov/student/
Best wishes to you.
 
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