Military Nursing Questions Answered

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Hello. I have seen many questions posted about the recruiting, the military, and future military experiences, I wanted to start a Q & A forum where you can ask questions related to the military from someone who is in the military.

- I am NOT a recruiter. I am fellow nurse who wants to inform others so they will be more informed than I was when I joined.

- I have been in the U.S. Navy for almost 3 years now. I have worked in the ICU for the same amount of time. I have also deployed as a Navy Nurse overseas. I am currently pursuing a masters in anesthesia degree.

- I will do my best to answer all questions. I will not lie to you about the military. If the subject is sensitive and possible jeopordize my career I will not answer you publicly about the issue but in a private email response.

Thanks and good luck.

Specializes in Critical Care Emergency Military Nursing.

Babe 48076: Work at a Naval Hospital is similar to non-county civilian hospitals. What I mean is; the patient population isn't like that out in town. We don't get the frequent drug abusers, gunshot victims, stabbings, crazy trauma's that you see on TV. We see a lot of retired military personnel, since most of the active duty people are fairly healthy. Obviously we get those wounded soldiers from the wars in Iraq/Afghanistan, etc. On the west coast we don't see many of them, despite our desire to care for them.

As for the shifts, we do shift work. I work in the ICU, and I typically work 13.5 hours/shift, there is no overtime. My civilian coworkers get overtime though. We also rotate days/nights every 6 weeks. Everyplace will schedule things a little differently. I get to wear scrubs, but others in the hospitals wear Navy uniforms (khakis or NWU's). Deploying is a whole other topic. See my next comment. Hope this helps; it probably spurred more questions though. I will do my best to answer all.

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Specializes in Critical Care Emergency Military Nursing.

Witchbaby: I am sorry I don't know anything about the Navy Reserves. I should know more but I don't. Clinical experience ALWAYS helps though.

You do have to be in decent shape, however there are many in the Navy that do not fall within the prescribed standards. To join the Navy you WILL have to be within certain weight standards. Since I am not a recruiter I can't tell you exactly what they are, especially for a female. If you follow the link below, it will take you to a site that describes what the Navy's PT test (PRT) and weight standards are. They vary by age. You won't have to meet these upon commissioning but you will need to meet them before the end of Officer Development School (ODS) which is about 5 weeks long. Not much time to get in shape if you're out of shape.

http://www.navy-prt.com/femalestandard/femalestandard.html

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This was very helpful. Thank you very much.

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Specializes in Critical Care Emergency Military Nursing.

Deployment Questions Answered, in part: Deploying depends on many things. I would say that the number 1 thing that determines who deploys is where you work. You WILL deploy if you work in the ICU. If you work in the ER, you MAY deploy. If you work anywhere else, it just depends. I work in the ICU and I deployed after 1 ½ years there.

There are different places where nurses deploy to. Some of them include: Iraq, Afghanistan in various roles. You could also deploy on a carrier, or on a FST (fleet surgical team) on a big deck (amphibious ship), or even on a small buoy like a destroyer or cruiser. Then there is the USNS Mercy of course. This last ship is where many non critical care nurses may get a taste of a deployment.

Where you deploy to also depends on how long you have been in, and how much experience you may have in a certain area. For example, a nurse at their first duty station is not going to deploy on a carrier or on a FST, but you may deploy to the Middle East somewhere. Hope this helps a little.

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hello and thank you in advance, i have several questions:

1. what is the process and how difficult is it for the navyto send you to school to get your masters? i am very interested in anesthesia.

2. how long are deployments in average?

3. if they send me to school will it be full time or will ihave to work part time?

i know if i go back the navy i will serve my 20 years but ijust wanted to know if this is possible, i mean to have they navy pay for mymasters. how difficult is it make rank? as an officer do you have to take testsor just by time being in the navy? if i go in with my masters already what rankwill they start me in?

thanks

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Specializes in Critical Care Emergency Military Nursing.

1) The process is competitive at times. The application process in much more involved than in the civilian world. You have to work in critical care 1st. You have to have the approval of your boss, their boss, and the SNE of the hospital. You can't apply right away. Typically you have to wait about 3-4 yrs first. You have to align when you will go to school with the time when you should be transferring to a new duty station.

2) Deployments vary in length depending on where you go. Typically they range from 7-9 months. As a CRNA in the Navy you WILL deploy a lot. About every other year, but this can vary but not too much.

3) If you decide to persue DUINS with the Navy it is full time, you can still promote while in school and get paid full time. Your job is to go to school full time and pass. You do have to wear your uniform while attending school. As for promotions and rank: without any nursing experience you will start as an Ensign (0-1), you will make LTJG (0-2) after 2 years, and LT(0-3) 2 years after that. These are almost guaranteed unless you do something outrageous or kill someone. After LT, promotions are merit & time based. Typically to make LCDR (0-4) you need a masters but some slip by that don't have it. I am not sure what rank someone will come in with masters, a recruiter will have to tell you that. Hope this helps a little.

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Hello navyman7,

I am currently in the process of filling out the NCP application with a medical recruiter from San Diego. I was wondering what kind of advice you would have for someone looking into Navy nursing with a significant other who is also looking into joining through NCP as well. If all goes well and we get selected for NCP, does the Navy try to keep you on the same unit or at least the same medical center when doing assignments? We both have similar goals with Navy nursing, but our main concern is being stationed away from each other. My medical recruiter said they would "try" to accommodate this but according to these threads, recruiters can't always be trusted. Would it be better if we got married first?

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Specializes in Critical Care Emergency Military Nursing.

miguelli1989: If you are both from San Diego there is a good chance that you will both be stationed at San Diego, it's cheaper for the Navy to keep you in SD versus paying for you both to go to Bethesda or Norfolk. With that said, anything can happen. If you are not married the detailers won't do much for you two. They will say they will put you together but in the end the Navy's needs come first. As for working in the same unit, it's very unlikely that you will work together. They won't let something like favoritism happen, so you won't work together. If you do get married then the detailers will work to get you two in the same city or area, but they don't have to put you at the same hospital. You may get the hospital in SD and the other may get sent to camp pendelton. This way techinically you guys are in the same area in case one of you deploys. Sorry this isn't better news, I just have never seen the Navy be kind to dual military families.

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Thank you for the information as it is really helpful. We are both a year and a half from graduating, and are both hoping to get accepted into the NCP program. Hypothetically speaking, if we both get accepted and have to sign the final documents, is that the only chance for us to let the NAVY know we might be married by the time graduation comes? In other words, if we get married from the time between signing and actually getting our assignments, can we still get that accommodation of getting stationed together? I don't even know if that makes any sense haha.

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Specializes in Critical Care Emergency Military Nursing.

miguelli: you will not be able to get the co-located assignment if you have already accepted orders. Once you negotiate you are pretty much stuck. I have NEVER heard of anyone getting out of an assignment once it has been made. The circumstances must be pretty bad for them to let you change orders at the last moment, really bad. In additon you need to be legally married or they won't do anything for you, being engaged doesn't do anything. I am not sure how they will work with you two otherwise. Detailers in my experience are very hard to work with. Do everything you can before you speak to the detailer to get your house in order otherwise you may be out of luck. Sorry again for the grim news.

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Thank you again... After all of this information, I don't think the NCP is in my best interest due to the time frame of the commitment and working with the detailers before actually getting married. I do however still want to do Navy Nursing. The benefits, extensive training, and personal growth opportunities are just too good to turn away, not to mention, serving my country. Are there any programs for students about a year from graduating with a BSN as a Navy Nurse reserve? From my understanding it seems as if it is only open for individuals who already have their license or who are currently practicing RNs.

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BTW is it possible for me to get your email for more personal questions that might not do so well over a public forum? =)

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