Army version of GMO assignment ?

[DieselDoctor]

I've been reading the threads, and it seems a lot of them contain negative feelings about the Navy's BMO tour policy. Is there a similiar required rotation for the Army? Does it tend to be as common as the GMO requirement?

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[st0rmin]

I've been reading the threads, and it seems a lot of them contain negative feelings about the Navy's BMO tour policy. Is there a similiar required rotation for the Army? Does it tend to be as common as the GMO requirement?

The Army has no GMO "requirement". GMO is an option for those who do not get the residency they want and would like to apply again at a later time. Also, the Army is trying to reduce the number of GMOs in the field and replacing them with BC/BE docs. Hope that helps.

 

[orbitsurgMD]

The Army has no GMO "requirement". GMO is an option for those who do not get the residency they want and would like to apply again at a later time. Also, the Army is trying to reduce the number of GMOs in the field and replacing them with BC/BE docs. Hope that helps.

What you are describing is a Hobson's choice. You take the residency you are offered, or you "choose" to do a GMO tour. If the Army really didn't have a requirement, then they would offer those not selected for their PGY2 spots out of internship a deferment for training.

 

[backrow]

The Army doesn't do much of the "between intern year and PGY2" GMO thing, instead they let you finish your residency before they send you to be a GMO. I know of more than a couple graduating residents who just found out they're going to be a Brigade Surgeon for the next few years. I know of one pediatrics guy who's doing that and won't see a pediatric patient for the next two years (unless he is able to get one half-day a week in the peds clinic).

I'm not sure if that is a better way the the "Navy" way, but I'm not sure I'd be happy if I had just completed my residency and now didn't get to use those skills for a couple years.

 

[Mirror Form]

The Army doesn't do much of the "between intern year and PGY2" GMO thing, instead they let you finish your residency before they send you to be a GMO.

The majority of people in the Army do go straight through these days. However, there are still plenty of doc's that end up doing a GMO tour, and not b/c they want to. It's pretty much unavoidable b/c the army can't hand out deferrments for people to do residency training in a specialty that the army doesn't need. Since the army also can't force people to do residency in something the doc doesn't want to do, what other option is there?

I really think that FAP makes more sense for both the Army and the doctors.

 

[threepeas]

I have been told by an ER resident that not only are FP,IM,peds vulnerable to the loathed GMO position but ER docs are too. I dont know what the percentages of attendings go through this process. I would find that kind of frustrating to get specialty training in ER then do a GMO tour doesnt make sense. perhaps the army never got rid of GMOs, just put you in them after residency?

 

[Mirror Form]

I have been told by an ER resident that not only are FP,IM,peds vulnerable to the loathed GMO position but ER docs are too. I dont know what the percentages of attendings go through this process. I would find that kind of frustrating to get specialty training in ER then do a GMO tour doesnt make sense. perhaps the army never got rid of GMOs, just put you in them after residency?

There are still plenty of GMO tours that occur BEFORE residency. Also, there are still specialists that get deployed as GMO's too.

 

[orbitsurgMD]

There are still plenty of GMO tours that occur BEFORE residency. Also, there are still specialists that get deployed as GMO's too.

A friend of mine got tapped when he was working at a certain southeast Naval hospital as an ophthalmologist to go to the fleet again for a year as a flight surgeon, this after having done three years before his residency as a GMO/Flight Surgeon. As you might expect, this did not make for a particularly happy flight surgeon as there aren't too many phaco units down on the flight line or much call for intra-ocular surgery, and this is an important skill for an ophthalmologist that requires continued practice to maintain.

That story sure got around and hasn't been forgotten, either.