Navy GMO

[stressed student024]

Hello all,
I have been doing research for the past year and a half on military medicine. I am very set on joining the military as a doctor. Currently, I am leaning towards USUHS and the HPSP is my backup plan for if I do not get in. One thing that is incredibly hard to find research on is time as a GMO. I spoke with a recruiter who today told me that time as a GMO is entirely optional and not very common among navy doctors. From the few things I have read, I am fairly certain that this is not true in the least. I am hoping that someone can provide any insight whatsoever. How likely is it that I will have to do time as a GMO? I am interested in both surgery and emergency medicine though I know this very well could change. Is it common for navy doctors to have to serve as a GMO for a couple years? If I do have to serve as a GMO, can I try to match to a desired specialty after I have done my time? Will I try to match in to a residency and find out on match day that I have to serve as a GMO? Any and all information regarding GMO time would be greatly appreciated. Also, sorry in advance if these questions are dumb- I have no military members to ask.

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[907914]

@Matthew9Thirtyfive

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

So first of all, your recruiter lied to you. It is very common to do a GMO in the Navy. Between 1/3 and half of interns go to GMO-land after PGY-1. It ranges from specialty to specialty. Psychiatry is 100% straight through, and many get full contracts so they don't even have to enter the match in their intern year. Same with neurosurgery. Other specialties are completely the opposite. Some either require a GMO tour or might as well require one since almost no one goes straight through. The rest are in between and will vary year to year.

Keep in mind I'm still a med student at USUHS, but I have talked with higher ups about this and have looked into it a lot.

Hello all,
I have been doing research for the past year and a half on military medicine. I am very set on joining the military as a doctor. Currently, I am leaning towards USUHS and the HPSP is my backup plan for if I do not get in.

I am a student a USUHS. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions about the school.

How likely is it that I will have to do time as a GMO?

Depends on the specialty, the year, your experience, your board scores and grades, how much the PDs want you, etc. It's variable, but the chances are higher in the Navy than in the Army or Air Force. However, I think that our system actually is better for us. The Army does very few GMO tours, but they will send their attending physicians on Battalion surgeon tours, which are just GMO tours with a different name. That doesn't really exist in the Navy, and once you are an attending, you will practice your specialty for the most part (deployments notwithstanding). Personally, I'd rather do 2 years as a GMO between PGY-1 and PGY-2 than do 3 years in operational medicine after I'm already an attending and then have to go relearn how to practice my specialty, but that's just me.

And not everyone does the BS tour, just like not everyone does a GMO tour.

I am interested in both surgery and emergency medicine though I know this very well could change.

Something like 3/4 of medical students change their minds on specialty, but you might not. It depends on the year, but the last I heard, surgery and EM are both about 50/50 right now. So about half the interns go to GMO world and half get to go straight through. I have heard that EM is trying to move toward a categorical program where everyone will go straight through, like psych.

Keep in mind that the numbers for specialties vary year to year, and in 3-4 years, things could be totally different (though EM and surgery will likely still have good numbers since they are critically short wartime specialties).

Is it common for navy doctors to have to serve as a GMO for a couple years? If I do have to serve as a GMO, can I try to match to a desired specialty after I have done my time? Will I try to match in to a residency and find out on match day that I have to serve as a GMO?

Yes. From USUHS, you are legally guaranteed at least an internship in a military program, so you can be assured you will match PGY-1. Then in the fall of intern year, you will apply to match to the rest of your residency (unless you are in neurosurgery or psych--or EM if they get there by then). If you have to do a GMO tour, you'll find out that you didn't match and contact the detailer to put in for orders. At least that's how it was explained to me by someone who did it.

You can then apply again for residency toward the end of your GMO tour. If you don't match again, you just keep on keeping on. GMO returnees are given extra points toward the match though, so you get a boost when competing against the incumbent interns.

Any and all information regarding GMO time would be greatly appreciated. Also, sorry in advance if these questions are dumb- I have no military members to ask.

It's not dumb. A lot of people in my class don't even know all this stuff.

 

[Detective SnowBucket]

Super helpful @Matthew9Thirtyfive . Another thing OP did not ask is, what if you go all the way through and serve your whole contract back (4 years) as a GMO then go for civilian match, are you at a disadvantage being a PGY4? How common is deferment to civilian residency as PGY1 in the Navy, for surgical specialties if that makes a difference?

Also, I couldn't get a straight answer from my recruiter (surprise surprise) but how can you get your contract extended above 4 years? If you do a long residency (like ortho 5 yr program), will your payback be 5 years?

 

[Mitch Connor]

I'm in the same boat with the GMO question. I was a Corpsman for 5 years and have now been a PA in the navy reserve for 2. I have talked to a handful of people who are in a position to know more about this and it sounds like my chances are better than average to avoid a GMO. I sure hope so. Who wants to go through all the work to get into med school and then get a scholarship, get through med school and then get jerked around for a few years before you can complete a residency? Not me, but I'm willing to roll the dice since I already have 8 years in and serving with the USMC is pretty cool.

BTW, does any one know if internal medicine is needed in the navy at this point. I expect this will change by the time I graduate but am curious.

 

[Mitch Connor]

Thanks for the links!