From what I have heard the normal day of a military dentist usually ends around 4. It seems to me that it would be possible to do some moonlighting (esp with no family). What percentage of military does moonlighting and can anyone share a moonlighting experience?
moonlighting
- Thread starter thebagg28
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That 4pm varies from branch to branch, base to base, and clinic to clinic...so I wouldn't count on that being a hard and fast rule.
In my experience,only a handful of dentists I've worked with moonlighted (less than 10%). One worked after his duty time (after 5pm). Another guy I know would use his leave days to work at the civilian practice (you get 2.5 leave days a month). Of course there are always weekends.
YOu'd need explicit permission from your commander, and your military job will always trump your civilian job...you're expected to drop everything at the civilian office if you need to report in.
I never moonlighted, but if you're really motivated, its a good opportunity to make more money and learn real world business skills.
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In the AF, you will have to get permission from your commander to moonlight. I've known a couple of people that have done it. Not many do it for long because it eats up all your leave or all your weekends. And, as noted above, Military obligations come first. If the AF needs you when you are supposed to be moonlighting, you have to drop everything and come in.
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Will the military ever tell you to work on weekends?
Yes, the Army will which will be dictated by the needs of the mission. You are a soldier 24 hours a day. This is quite common at the big posts where there is a high operational tempo.
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Well that's an example of army bull**** lol
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I haven't heard of too many docs working evenings, not many civilian dental practices are open late. There is a clinic by Ft Campbell where the Ft Campbell dentists moonlight that some guys worked evening though.
It might be somewhat difficult to find a practice that will even hire a military doc, due to only being able to work a few days a month. I would guess that there is at least one practice near each base you could get hired for a few saturdays a month and on days you can take leave.
The experience of military docs moonlighting probably greatly depends on the practice they moonlight at. Four Captains, including me, have moonlighted here at Ft Riley at the same practice during the last two years. Two quit, one is currently deployed, and I still work there until I head to endo school this summer. It is a bad place to work, as the owner is the worst dentist you could possibly imagine, you wouldn't believe some of the stories I could tell you. I have no idea how this guy has a license. I routinely replace fillings he placed a year ago that are now failing because he doesn't use rubber dams and fills everything with flowable composite. Also several of the assistants are lazy and since I only work occasionally they don't care if they do a good job assisting me or not. The front desk ladies never give me enough time and are always squeezing in emergencies, so my days there are exhausting and stressful. The only good thing about the place is that the owner rarely works on the days I work, so I don't have to put up with him and I don't have anyone telling me what to do like I would on the Army post. The only reason I am still working there is because during my civilian endo residency I won't be able to moonlight, so I am trying to save up some money for the next two years. I had about 50 days of leave saved up, so I am working two days a week there for several months until I head to endo school.
So my moonlighting situation isn't the greatest, but hey, maybe you will find a great place to work. It has made me appreciate having adequate time for procedures, ample supplies, and good assistants at Ft Riley. I thought that private practice would be so much better than being an Army dentist, until I saw how bad private practice can be. The grass is always greener I guess... Thanks for letting me vent, I feel better now
It might be somewhat difficult to find a practice that will even hire a military doc, due to only being able to work a few days a month. I would guess that there is at least one practice near each base you could get hired for a few saturdays a month and on days you can take leave.
The experience of military docs moonlighting probably greatly depends on the practice they moonlight at. Four Captains, including me, have moonlighted here at Ft Riley at the same practice during the last two years. Two quit, one is currently deployed, and I still work there until I head to endo school this summer. It is a bad place to work, as the owner is the worst dentist you could possibly imagine, you wouldn't believe some of the stories I could tell you. I have no idea how this guy has a license. I routinely replace fillings he placed a year ago that are now failing because he doesn't use rubber dams and fills everything with flowable composite. Also several of the assistants are lazy and since I only work occasionally they don't care if they do a good job assisting me or not. The front desk ladies never give me enough time and are always squeezing in emergencies, so my days there are exhausting and stressful. The only good thing about the place is that the owner rarely works on the days I work, so I don't have to put up with him and I don't have anyone telling me what to do like I would on the Army post. The only reason I am still working there is because during my civilian endo residency I won't be able to moonlight, so I am trying to save up some money for the next two years. I had about 50 days of leave saved up, so I am working two days a week there for several months until I head to endo school.
So my moonlighting situation isn't the greatest, but hey, maybe you will find a great place to work. It has made me appreciate having adequate time for procedures, ample supplies, and good assistants at Ft Riley. I thought that private practice would be so much better than being an Army dentist, until I saw how bad private practice can be. The grass is always greener I guess... Thanks for letting me vent, I feel better now
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Some examples of weekend duty:
1) Doing screening examinations of mobilizing reservists/guardsmen/deploying soldiers.
2) Getting called in to the clinic for after hours emergency.
3) Being stuck in the field (Field Training Exercise) for 1-2 weeks if you're in a TOE unit.
