My Head is Spinning! POLL

[nontradguy]

I'm former military, have done the SDN research, and have spoken with former military physicians. For HPSP, I know that one should expect to do a GMO tour regardless, and both seem to provide the same outlook for the future regarding residency placement. At the end-of-the-day it seems like it's just about what uniform one wants to wear? Ahhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THIS IS A POLL - Please folks, chime in! I'm easily influenced at this point. Air Force or Navy? Maybe I should scrap both and go Army?!?


(Long-term, I'm thinking about FP or EM)

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[Barcu]

Army has the most residencies and seems to have the lowest chance of being a GMO.

I personally am doing AF. That is mostly a personal preference to me due to family. All three branches seem pretty similar. Though, I have heard the most complaining about the AF on this board.

If you do want to do AF, you better apply quick. They run out the quickest (as early as Feb).

 

[bluebird123]

AF HPSP board is meeting Feb 8th to hand out the majority of the remaining scholarships. Deadline to submit applications to the board was a few days ago. This means that if you are a matrix applicant and don't need to go to the board (GPA >3.5 and MCAT >29), you may still have a chance of getting a scholarship if you act fast. To be considered, you must have completed your physical at MEPS (an AF physical, which has some extra stuff compared to other branches) and have an acceptance letter in hand.

So, basically, if you want to do AF and you're applying for a scholarship starting this fall, you had better be on the phone to your local medical recruiter right now.

 

[nontradguy]

Army has the most residencies and seems to have the lowest chance of being a GMO.

This is information that I keep coming across, but I hesitate to base my decision off of. I'm thinking that I should just expect to do a GMO regardless of branch. hmmm...


I get the impression that GMO tours aren't that valued by residency programs unless a particular program values Vets. Is this generally true? Further hmmm...

I personally am doing AF. That is mostly a personal preference to me due to family.

Family - do you mean because the AF has the shortest deployments in length?

So, basically, if you want to do AF and you're applying for a scholarship starting this fall, you had better be on the phone to your local medical recruiter right now.

Very good point and I should have mentioned that my AF package is complete and has been submitted.


For FP or EM, does one branch stand above the others?

 

[Perrotfish]

Advatages:

Navy: Best base locations, most options for GMO tours.

Army: Best chance of straight through training

AF: Best chance of a civilian deferment for training

Disadvantages:

Navy: Worst chance of avoiding a GMO tour, which can functionally extend your commitment. The Marines (and therefore Navy Med) finds a way to be at war even when the US is at peace.

Army: Worst chance for a civilian deferment. GME largely located in unpleasant locations. Surgery residencies all require a research year.

AF: Worst military GME program, a lot of GMOs that aren't going anywhere, overreliance on deferments means that the odds of getting a particular specialty will vary wildly from year to year, they seem to have the most miserable docs (though this might come from the fact that they tend to attract people trying to game the system and get military money while minimizing military commitments), based on SDN comments docs seem to be more likely to report directly to line officers rather than a medical chain of command, and finally the uniform they give you is an FDA approved form of contraception.

My conclusion: choose the Army or the Navy, avoid the AF.

For FP or EM, does one branch stand above the others?

Not sure about FP, but for EM there's no question that Army has the best programs. They own the only level 1 Trauma center in the military, and they're the only service that has ERs that serve the public. For years the top two military EM programs were also the top two programs in the nation. Navy an AF have nothing close.

Of course you need to keep in mind that in all branches EM is WAY more competitive in the military than in the civilian world.

 

[AF M4]

I've been in the AF for awhile. I don't recommend it.

 

[a1qwerty55]

This is information that I keep coming across, but I hesitate to base my decision off of. I'm thinking that I should just expect to do a GMO regardless of branch. hmmm...
/

Most Army residencies are continuous contract that means that you are accepted for the entire residency, not just the internship. Very few of the graduating interns from my facility did GMO's and those usually were subpar, or didn't match in a very competative speciality. In an entire intern class at a medical center only 3-4 did GMO's and several volunteered for them.

As far is Army GME being at not so great places as another poster alluded to? I'm wondering what that is based on - our Med Centers are located in Tacoma Washington, Honolulu Hawaii, San Antonio TX, Washington DC, the only two Med Cens that aren't that palatable location wise (and even those have their good sides) are El Paso TX, and Augusta GA.

For FP the locations are more mixed - as some are at community hospitals in the rural south or central TX.

 

[The White Coat Investor]

For years the top two military EM programs were also the top two programs in the nation.

B.S. It is highly unlikely that any military EM program was ever one of the top twenty, much less top two, residency programs in the country.

However, it is quite likely that the residents from a military program had the top average in-service exam score multiple times in the past.

The reason for this is that the military takes great pride in, and puts great emphasis (read overemphasis) on doing well on this written, multiple choice test administered to all EM residents in the country once a year. So while a civilian resident at a top-notch program is intubating patients in the ED, rotating in a bustling ICU, and in general learning to take care of sick people, the military resident is studying for a written test by reading from a textbook and taking a weekly test in the format of the in-service exam.

You tell me which residency training experience you'd prefer.

P.S. I'm a former military EM residency faculty member who trained as a civilian. I passed (by a healthy margin) the in-service exam as an intern. I didn't need any particular "teaching to the test" to pass this pass-fail exam. No one (except the military residency directors) cares if you got a 92 or an 82, as long as you didn't get a 72. Why do they care? So they can tell you they're the "number one" residency in the country.

 

[deuist]

Not sure about FP, but for EM there's no question that Army has the best programs. They own the only level 1 Trauma center in the military, and they're the only service that has ERs that serve the public.

What are you talking about? BAMC and Wilford Hall are combined to form a single Army/Air Force training program. When I rotated through Wilford Hall, we saw civilians there, too. I think it is also a level 1 trauma center.

For years the top two military EM programs were also the top two programs in the nation. Navy an AF have nothing close.

Where did you hear that? Can you really say that BAMC is better than Cinci, Denver, Carolinas, Vanderbilt, Jacksonville, Christiana, Parkland, Kings County, etc...? The lectures are certainly top notch, but there's more to a residency program than that.

Of course you need to keep in mind that in all branches EM is WAY more competitive in the military than in the civilian world.

Finally, something we can agree on.