What is the difference between DMO and UMO

[tigglebiggles]

Hi everybody, I am applying to USUHS and have been looking into the option for Navy, and have come to the conclusion that a GMO tour is more probable than for the other branches. Anyways, I started doing research into flight surgery or diving medicine rather than a basic GMO tour, and have come across the usage of two terms which I am unclear about.

Is there a difference between a Diving Medical Officer and an Undersea Medical Officer? My guesses so far are that either they are used interchangeably or one of them requires more training than the other. Thanks a lot for your help.

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[blee]

Hi everybody, I am applying to USUHS and have been looking into the option for Navy, and have come to the conclusion that a GMO tour is more probable than for the other branches. Anyways, I started doing research into flight surgery or diving medicine rather than a basic GMO tour, and have come across the usage of two terms which I am unclear about.

Is there a difference between a Diving Medical Officer and an Undersea Medical Officer? My guesses so far are that either they are used interchangeably or one of them requires more training than the other. Thanks a lot for your help.

Technically, there is no such thing as a DMO. The Navy only has one subspecialty code for UMOs, who are all trained in medical and administrative aspects of care for the submarine, diving, SEAL, and other special communities. The Navy Diving Manual refers to Diving Medical Officers, which is why the term sticks around; when you read what it considers to be a DMO, you realize that they're actually referring to a UMO.

In practice, the two terms are interchangeable and functionally identical. Predictably, divers/SEALs/etc. tend to use the term DMO more often, while you'll hear the term UMO more frequently around submariners.

 

[BOHICA-FIGMO]

Hi everybody, I am applying to USUHS and have been looking into the option for Navy, and have come to the conclusion that a GMO tour is more probable than for the other branches. Anyways, I started doing research into flight surgery or diving medicine rather than a basic GMO tour, and have come across the usage of two terms which I am unclear about.

Is there a difference between a Diving Medical Officer and an Undersea Medical Officer? My guesses so far are that either they are used interchangeably or one of them requires more training than the other. Thanks a lot for your help.

None. Every Undersea Medical Officer is also qualified as a Medical Department Diving Officer.

 

[tigglebiggles]

thanks a lot for your answers. that clears things up for me.

 

[DiveMD]

None. I guess the "DMO" title is given to you after completing dive school in Panama City. You get the UMO designator after graduating from NUMI in Groton, CT. I do know someone who got certified to perform UMO duties at a Sub Squadron without completing navy diving training. You could argue this person was a UMO and not a DMO. BUMED can do anything they want if they need to fill a billet.

 

[tigglebiggles]

None. I guess the "DMO" title is given to you after completing dive school in Panama City. You get the UMO designator after graduating from NUMI in Groton, CT. I do know someone who got certified to perform UMO duties at a Sub Squadron without completing navy diving training. You could argue this person was a UMO and not a DMO. BUMED can do anything they want if they need to fill a billet.

would you say that it is more common to go straight through NUMI and dive school? or are there a fair share of docs getting stopped in between?

 

[blee]

would you say that it is more common to go straight through NUMI and dive school? or are there a fair share of docs getting stopped in between?

Yes, the most common training pathway is to get orders to NUMI, go through the curricula there and at NDSTC (dive school), and graduate. When it happens, UMOCs (Undersea Medical Officer Candidates) typically "fail" because they can't pass the diving PST, which means that they can't go to dive school. (For as long as I've been around, this usually happens to 1 or 2 two UMOCs in each class.) Most of them end up passing at a later time, with another class. For the small percentage who don't, their final dispo depends a lot on fleet/operational needs and leadership.

 

[BOHICA-FIGMO]

would you say that it is more common to go straight through NUMI and dive school? or are there a fair share of docs getting stopped in between?

Vast majority complete the standard pipeline. Rare exceptions like my good friend who went to an operational billet before completing dive school (which he eventually did) are extremely rare.

 

[CoolRunnings]

Ses there are quite a few UMOs on here. One question I had: would I have to spend 30 days on a sub? This doesn't really appeal to me at all as I imagine it's pretty claustrophobic!

 

[FermiParadox42]

Ses there are quite a few UMOs on here. One question I had: would I have to spend 30 days on a sub? This doesn't really appeal to me at all as I imagine it's pretty claustrophobic!

If you're claustrophobic you might not want to be a UMO at all. You probably wouldn't enjoy having to spend hours in the Hyperbaric Chamber or doing Surface Supplied diving - requirements to get through dive school.

 

[blee]

Ses there are quite a few UMOs on here. One question I had: would I have to spend 30 days on a sub? This doesn't really appeal to me at all as I imagine it's pretty claustrophobic!

Sub time is only required for Submarine Medical Officer qualification. Side bit of trivia: your DMO/UMO pin is not a warfare device but "merely" a qualification. Your flight surgeon and SWMDO-qualified friends do, in fact, have warfare devices; if you want one as well, you will need to become a Submarine Medical officer, which requires a little extra work once you're at your first billet.

That said, FermiParadox42 is right; if you're claustrophobic at all, I would give the whole UMO idea a good hard look. Submarines may be cramped but they're way more comfortable than the typical diver's workspace, which is either very cold, very dark, very (very) small, or some combination of the three. Exposure to some of these spaces is part of the required curriculum.