WTU Brigade Surgeon

[Homunculus]

haven't seen this discussed previously and i keep seeing it on the tasking lists-- anyone have experience or know anyone who has done one of these? i get the traditional brigade surgeon duties/responsibilities and have talked to several. the WTU versions though i haven't. on one hand i suppose it's a lot of admin and politics with high visibility-- but on the other-- well, it's not anything you'd go to NTC or the desert for. just curious if people have heard anything.

--your friendly neighborhood option researching caveman

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[bustbones26]

haven't seen this discussed previously and i keep seeing it on the tasking lists-- anyone have experience or know anyone who has done one of these? i get the traditional brigade surgeon duties/responsibilities and have talked to several. the WTU versions though i haven't. on one hand i suppose it's a lot of admin and politics with high visibility-- but on the other-- well, it's not anything you'd go to NTC or the desert for. just curious if people have heard anything.

--your friendly neighborhood option researching caveman

Well, I once placed "WTU surgeon" as one of the three prospective positions on my OER. My chief advised that I remove it, stating something to the effect of, "We only give that job to the worst doctors".

NOW before anybody starts throwing stones at me, be aware that these words were NOT mine. I am just pointing out that, at least at my prior duty station, this is how senior leaders viewed WTU surgeons.

 

[sonofva]

Well, I once placed "WTU surgeon" as one of the three prospective positions on my OER. My chief advised that I remove it, stating something to the effect of, "We only give that job to the worst doctors".

NOW before anybody starts throwing stones at me, be aware that these words were NOT mine. I am just pointing out that, at least at my prior duty station, this is how senior leaders viewed WTU surgeons.

The people I've seen in the WTU were either there as punishment for something, or were seriously trying to avoid deployment. Both were not looked so highly on.

 

[haujun]

I disagreed. I think WTU is one of highly visible responsibility and if your senior rater is O-6 or higher and you get a top block the you are in a good position. Best doctors get out of the military. I doubt that assignment people look at inservice exam scores when they give out assignments

 

[jabreal00]

I disagreed. I think WTU is one of highly visible responsibility and if your senior rater is O-6 or higher and you get a top block the you are in a good position. Best doctors get out of the military. I doubt that assignment people look at inservice exam scores when they give out assignments

Anecdotally active duty physicians who are assigned into the WTU or SRP have serious academic or personal issues. They either flunked out or barely made it out of residency or were thoroughly disliked in residency. The head physician who did my SRP (as I was getting ready to deploy) was a MAJ. He and I got to small chitchat and he gave me the biggest sob-story. He basically flamed out of two different residencies. He was bidding his time to reapply for another.

One is better off as a Brigade surgeon. All the deployable operational assignments (Brigade-, Battalion-, Flight- surgeons) are the ones with high visibility at HRC. I was told point blank by a HCR COL who came to my MTF to advertise the benefits of operational assignments that the Army keeps GME to support operations (training missions and deployments). Those in WTU are in entirely different units with no visibility from the line commanders. Plus being deployed, there is a palpable loathing from senior NCOs and officers of soldiers who have a whole host of medical issues (mostly musculoskeletal or mental health) on the path to MEBs. They believe most are malingering to get out of duty. The assignments that are non-deployable (WTU or SRP) are not well regarded. Those could be staffed entirely by civilians but also by some hapless active duty physician.

 

[Ziehl-Neelsen]

Ehh. I don't disagree with the above posters about a WTU position not doing as much for you on a promoton board as a brigade or battalion spot. But since my anecdotal, N=2 evidence is just as valid as anybody else's...

I'm sure that WTU positions are a dumping ground for sub-standard physicians, but both of the physicians that I know personally who took these positions were excellent docs who volunteered for WTU positions for personal reasons. Both were medical subspecialists at major MEDCENS who saw the writing on the wall regarding operational deployments. Rather than enter the lottery of operational assignments, both volunteered for WTU positions associated with the MEDCEN saving their families another move and ensuring that they would be able to practice their subspecialties at the MEDCEN to fight skill atrophy during the assignment.

I totally understood their decisions as they pertained to personal goals and priorities. Sometimes roses do indeed grow in dung heaps.

 

[haujun]

Ok. Personally I think I would hate working under those circumstances. I thought I read in HRC website for MC that working at WTU is a good thing (discriminator) besides getting top block in the OER, EFMB, MSM, deployments etc...I guess not.

 

[Gastrapathy]

Isn't this in sembach? That would be all that mattered to me.

 

[d2305]

http://www.wtc.army.mil/wtc/wtuMap.html

 

[Gastrapathy]

And Nevermind.