A different question

[Raider 3/1]

So I thought I would start this thread to ask a few questions besides the usual "how do I get into Nursing for the Military" questions that every keeps asking here.

These questions are geared towards experienced military nurses if you could help out.

So how are you're relationships with Doctors that you work with? Do you spend time together as friends and co-workers outside of the work place?

Are you ever limited to the type of patient you see in the hospital or clinic? Specifically, do you only treat military aged males and females?

For those of you that have worked both in the civilian and military side of nursing, would you say the opportunities for learning are about the same when compared to each other?

I think that last one may have been asked already; but I wanted to hear what the experienced military RN's had to say about these few questions I had.

Thanks!

[Lunah, MSN, RN]

Yep, I am friends with many of our docs, more so with the ones closer to my age. :)

In my military ER, we see all ages, from days old (or minutes old, yikes) to the oldest retirees. The whole lifespan.

As a military nurse, the education provided by the experience of deployed nursing is unique, something one will not experience as a civilian. Other than that, not so different.

[Raider 3/1]

Thanks Pixie,

How about fun around the work place? Being that you're a Commissioned Officer, I know there is a certain professionalism and mature nature you have to instill in the enlisted group of Sailors, Soldiers, Marines, and Airmen. Can you still have "shenanigans" around the work place when appropriate?

Do you ever have days where you're command just decides the take a couple days off for no reason which in turn gets you a couple days off from you're nursing duties? Or days where they make up made up holidays for an extended weekend? My favorite was basket weaving day hahaha

How diverse is it working as a Military Nurse? For example, I was enlisted and had one week of 0900 to 1700 regular patient check ins. The next week, im trudging through the muck and mud in the field providing over watch for my Marines. Lastly for next month, im sitting on a mock tug boat providing medical coverage as recon ropes in and takes over the Somali pirate controlled vessel for training. I have to say, one of my favorite aspects of my enlisted time was the constant change in work environment. I never got stuck into the same old routine for too long. Can I expect this type of working environment and change in responsibilities as a Military Nurse? I don't like to get bored but give it to me truthfully.

Thanks again!

[midinphx, BSN]

Good questions.

There is no where near a simple answer to any of it, except - it depends.

Relationships in the military are a different challenge for me. I was prior army enlisted. I expected the same type of relationships coming back into AF nursing. I was really wrong. Nurses tend to eat their young - military can be more ruthless than civilians due to competition for positions and promotions. However, I have built some relationships with people I would never have had the chance to know. It's funny to run into someone you were deployed with who didn't feel like a friend at the time, yet the shared experience bonds you together. I work with a really great team now. There will still be some drama, but there always is.

Learning experiences. As an ER and ICU nurse on the civilian side I had a wide variety of patients on a daily basis, and often more complex. But that all prepared me to serve our critically wounded soldiers where they needed that skill. Day to day, I am now facing that I do not have any critical patients. They are much simpler right now. Maybe a good break. I can say that the variety in the military has had me care for 2.2 kg infants in Afghanistan all the way up to WWII hero's having heart surgery.

It's been said before, but bears true that it is all what you make of it.

[ArjjA]

I was wondering about the schedule? My recruiter said that it is mostly 2 days on, 1 off then 2 on then 2 off. Is this true or is there a way to do 3 straight for those who want it. Also, when census is low how does that work? I would doubt that they would put you "on call" like the civilian side.

[Lunah, MSN, RN]

I was wondering about the schedule? My recruiter said that it is mostly 2 days on, 1 off then 2 on then 2 off. Is this true or is there a way to do 3 straight for those who want it. Also, when census is low how does that work? I would doubt that they would put you "on call" like the civilian side.

That is going to be totally unit and location dependent. There is no way your recruiter could even know what days/shifts you would be working.

I typically work seven 12s in a two-week period, and those are just my regular nursing shifts outside of other duties and responsibilities. It can be any day of the week because our military don't self-schedule, but our civilians do. We just "fill in" (that is, take the shifts no one wanted). Our military nurses also rotate between days and nights.

[midinphx, BSN]

I have the same story as Pixie on the AF side of the house.

I too was told that it would be like a civilian schedule. It was hard when I learned that I would be working what would have been overtime in my prior job, but now was working for free. And really, don't plan on low census days off. You need that time to catch up on military training and CBT's. Almost all of my deployment processing and PCS processing was also done on my "time off". I think I may make minimum wage if you count how many hours I actually give to the military and do the math per hour.

[Lunah, MSN, RN]

And then there's working 284 days in a row while deployed! But you have to admit, deployment pay is sweeeeeet! :)