USUHS physical

[DC kid]

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Hey everyone,

I'll be interviewing at USUHS at the end of the month and I had a few questions about the DODMERB physical:

1. What does it entail?

2. How strict are they about disqualifiers? I used to have exercise induced asthma as a teen but never had an attack or needed to go to the hospital. What about past medication use?


3. What if I'm a couple pounds shy of the minimum weight requirement?


Thanks!

 

[Spang]

This my unofficial advice, which is worth exactly what you paid for it:

I spent 13 years on active duty as an aviator, one of the most notorious doctor-avoiding breeds known to man, and I would advise you to use caution in filling out the health questionaire. I'm not saying lie, but use some sense. If you had one episode or ten episodes or exercise-induced asthma 15 years ago and were never on meds, etc, that's way different than having full-blown asthma on daily inhaled b-antagonist, steroids, leuotriene inhibitors or whatever. I would think twice, at least, about checking the block labeled "asthma" is the former is truer than the latter. Same way with head injury/concussion/LOC. I mean who didn't run into something when they were a kid and need stitches? That's different than having your skull split open by an axe and spending 6 weeks in a coma after burr-hole decompression of your melon. See what I mean? Again, don't lie or hide something, but be sure it is what you are saying it is by checking that block. Every yes, except "vision in both eyes" will have to be explained!

As far as being underweight, salty foods and fat stuff TID x 1 week prior to the weigh-in. Papa John's has some great specials going on right now and McDonald's never runs out of Big Macs.

Spang

 

[tinkerbelle]

(Sorry, this question is a little off topic)

I had to have a physical done at Ft. Meade in order to apply for the HPSP Scholarship (and I passed). Now if I get an interview at USHUS, do I have to retake the physical?

 

[UCBShocker]

MEPS physicals do not count, at least my interview letter for USUHS said that. MEPs only works for HPSP. Now I don't know if yours was considered MEPS or not... but if it was for HPSP it probably was. Couldn't hurt to ask though.

 

[grumbo]

You'll need to take another physical. They're two different systems and the military has a way of no sharing info across systems. Don't worry though, the USUHS physical (DODMERB) is more like a regular doctor visit and not the cattle hearding you had with MEPS.

 

[DC kid]

This my unofficial advice, which is worth exactly what you paid for it:

I spent 13 years on active duty as an aviator, one of the most notorious doctor-avoiding breeds known to man, and I would advise you to use caution in filling out the health questionaire. I'm not saying lie, but use some sense. If you had one episode or ten episodes or exercise-induced asthma 15 years ago and were never on meds, etc, that's way different than having full-blown asthma on daily inhaled b-antagonist, steroids, leuotriene inhibitors or whatever. I would think twice, at least, about checking the block labeled "asthma" is the former is truer than the latter. Same way with head injury/concussion/LOC. I mean who didn't run into something when they were a kid and need stitches? That's different than having your skull split open by an axe and spending 6 weeks in a coma after burr-hole decompression of your melon. See what I mean? Again, don't lie or hide something, but be sure it is what you are saying it is by checking that block. Every yes, except "vision in both eyes" will have to be explained!

As far as being underweight, salty foods and fat stuff TID x 1 week prior to the weigh-in. Papa John's has some great specials going on right now and McDonald's never runs out of Big Macs.

Spang

Thanks for the reply! Won't everything be in your medical record that people at DODMERB will see? For example, if I was presribed an albuterol inhaler years ago "just in case" - that'll be in my file. Won't it look bad if I don't list "asthma" on the questionnaire?

 

[tinkerbelle]

Don't worry though, the USUHS physical (DODMERB) is more like a regular doctor visit and not the cattle hearding you had with MEPS.

Well that's good 🙂 Cause I've had enough duck walking and standing half naked and being yelled at 🙄

Hey, UCBShocker, I keep seeing people use the acronym MEPS. What does it mean?

 

[Neuronix]

Well that's good 🙂 Cause I've had enough duck walking and standing half naked and being yelled at 🙄

Don't worry, if you sign you'll have plenty more opportunities to be humiliated, yelled at, and forced to do things you don't want to do.

 

[cdreed]

Well that's good 🙂 Cause I've had enough duck walking and standing half naked and being yelled at 🙄

Hey, UCBShocker, I keep seeing people use the acronym MEPS. What does it mean?

MEPS= Military Entrance Processing something or other. Station, I believe

 

[cdreed]

Don't worry, if you sign you'll have plenty more opportunities to be humiliated, yelled at, and forced to do things you don't want to do.

Right on! Now, you have a firm grasp of military life. 😀

 

[GMO_52]

Every yes, except "vision in both eyes" will have to be explained!

Spang

Forgot one: "Am currently in good health." Its hiding in there just to see if you're actually reading the questions.

 

[Jet915]

I concur about MEPS physicals. I was peeved when I had to do another one for HPSP. Doing physicals with a bunch of high school kids is not my cup of tea. The USUHS physical on the other hand was a piece of cake.

 

[Spang]

Accepted: USUHS - Air Force, SLU, MCO, Creighton

Navy HPSP

U.C. San Diego B.S./M.S. 2002-2003
Creighton University School of Medicine Class of 2007

Doing physicals with a bunch of high school kids is not my cup of tea.

Yeah, I could see how that would peeve someone with your credentials.

Spang

 

[DeepCowboy]

Thanks for the reply! Won't everything be in your medical record that people at DODMERB will see? For example, if I was presribed an albuterol inhaler years ago "just in case" - that'll be in my file. Won't it look bad if I don't list "asthma" on the questionnaire?

No, it won't look bad. Don't think that someone is going to sit down and look through your medical record with a fine tooth comb and question you on every little discrepancy. Military doctors are busy people. You are applying to be an officer, so they will in fact take you at your word and focus most on what you put as your current state of health. So, although Spang won't put his balls on the line, I will: Don't say you have asthma, and don't think you are lying by doing this. Although that box is innocuously only labeled "asthma," it should be labeled (and this is what they are looking for on these forms) "Do you have debilitating asthma that would prevent you from doing a military job?" You obviously are not in this category. Now, if you put on the form that you have a left arm and in reality you don't have a left arm, they are gonna catch that (by the way, I don't think that is waiverable).

Don't get me wrong, I am all about honesty in medicine. But I am also a submariner (we also don't like doctors because there are so many conditions that are disqualifying for submarine duty), and that means I am a sneaky bastard. I wouldn't let the rest of my life be wrecked over something stupid like being honest to my own detriment when it is neither required nor desired. The 5th amendment, although not applicable here, is ~200 years old and still in force for a reason.

If you do have some kind of issue during your physical qualification process, just remember that the doctor went through the same process and she/he probably isn't the most perfect genetic specimen either, so if you have a reasonable story that can explain something, they will want to help you. They want you to get in!

Any other submariner or Navy nuclear power applicants out there?

Hope this helps.