Air Force Hospitals with ICU's

Specialties Government

Published

How many Air Force bases have hospitals with ICU's?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in psych/medical-surgical.

In the US: 10 hospitals, 1 clinic that have 46NXE or "critical care"

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Thanks for the reply!

Critical care clinic? Sounds strange...

Are there any overseas?

Looking to join the service and trying to decide between the three services, base locations is one of the things I am looking at.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in psych/medical-surgical.

There are 3 overseas on my list, 1 in Landstuhl, on ein Lakenheath, and one in Yokota.

I don't know how accurate this sheet is anymore. I got a call from my recruiter yesterday, and he told me several bases on my list are not allowed for beginning locations now because they are no longer multi unit hospitals. Kirtland, NM, Luke, AZ, MacDill, FL, Offutt, NE, and Scott, IL were the ones that he had me scratch off. Can anyone confirm these bases no longer contain full fledged hospitals?

Don't know much about army/navy/marines, because I have only really investigated the Air Force.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care/Trauma.

Are you still interested in the Air Force or another service? There's been a lot of recent changes with the BRAC (Base Relocation and Closures) happening in all the military branches. Here's some more information about where the ICU's are:

In the US:

Wilford Hall Medical Center (Combining with Brooke Army Medical Center) in San Antonio, TX

- This is a joint hospital and clinics, to be re-named as San Antonio Military Medical Center

- This is the biggest and most advanced Army/Air Force hospital in the US

- This is the only Military Hospital with a Pediatric ICU and a Neonatal ICU.

Andrews AFB, Maryland (Combining with Walter-Reid Army Medical Center and Bethesda Naval Regional Medical Center)

- In the D.C. Area

- Next largest military hospital in the US

Elmendorf AFB, Alaska

Travis AFB, California

- Recently started a new open-heart service

Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio

Nellis AFB, Nevada

Keesler AFB, Mississippi

Eglin AFB, Florida

Scott AFB, Illinois

Overseas:

Technically, the Air Force counts Alaska and Hawaii as overseas, so Elmendorf is an overseas hospital

Tripler Army Medical Center, Hawaii

This is an Army hospital, but occasionally it gets staffed with Air Force Nurses as well.

-Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, Germany

A joint Army/Air Force Hospital, currently to be an ICU nurse there, you have to have prior experience as a CCATT Nurse, which is the Critical Care Air Transport Team (litterally a flying ICU) that transports critically ill wounded warriors back to the US from their deployed location, and they provide humanitarian critical care air transport in the U.S., for example, after Hurricane Katrina. If you are coming in new to the Air Force and want Germany, you may be able to negotiate it into your contract, just be sure you have it in writing!

- Lakenheath Air Base, England

- Misawa Air Base, Japan

Not sure if there's still Air Force ICU here or not, may have transitioned to using the local facilities

- Kadena Air Base, Japan

Naval hosptial, but possible to get stationed there

- Osan Air Base, South Korea (this is usually a remote tour for 1 year, meaning you can't bring your family...but if you do it, then you get to pick your base of preference afterwards, so you can go to any base you want guarenteed, ocassionally there are three year accompanied tours here, meaning you can bring your family)

These are the only hosptials with ICU's, but there are other places that an ICU nurse can work in the Air Force. There are many leadership opportunities available, nurse manager or commanders.

If you're interested in teaching, you could work for any Medical Group in the Education and Training department.

Also, you could work at one of the C-STARS programs (Center for Sustainment of Trauma and Readiness Skills). They are programs where other ICU nurses go (who may have been away from the bedside for a while) to get a 4-week intensive experience in trauma as a refresher before deploying. These are located in Baltimore, MD, Cincinatti, OH, and St Louis, MO. The ICU nurse there works 4-5 shifts per month in the civillian hosptial, and also coordinates all the clinical preceptorships for the nurses rotating through for monthly training.

Hope this info helps. It may not be an all inclusive list, but it's close. I am an ICU nurse (46N3E) in the Air Force and I'm currently at Wilford Hall Medical Center, transitioning to Brooke Army Medical Center in the next few months. Let me know if you have any other questions!

I also have lots of friends in the Army Nurse Corps and I have loved getting to work jointly with the Army, so that wouldn't be a bad option either. I don't know much about the Navy, but it's probably be good too.

Good luck,

Capt Studley

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Med/Surg, APU/PACU, Peds, Flight.

Lakenheath has an SCU technically, not an ICU.

: )

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

For sure Scott has been downgraded from hospital to clinic - ER.

What about Yokota? Still a large hospital

Osan, Korea - not a big hospital - they ship the cool stuff to the 121 Evac hospital at Yongsan Army Base in Seoul.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical care.

I did hear that at Andrews AFB the army and navy medical centers will be combining but there will be 2 locations. One in Bethesda, md and one in ft bolvior, va. So the air force nurses will be working at one of these sites..

Up Vote Up Vote ×
I did hear that at Andrews AFB the army and navy medical centers will be combining but there will be 2 locations. One in Bethesda, md and one in ft bolvior, va. So the air force nurses will be working at one of these sites..

Bethesda and Walter Reed are combining. Fort Belvoir is it's own Army hospital, though they have been asking for volunteers at Bethesda. There are some Air Force nurses currently working in Bethesda. I have no clue about AF nurses being able to go to Fort Belvoir when it opens.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care, Med-Surg. Telemetry.

Hope this info helps. It may not be an all inclusive list, but it's close. I am an ICU nurse (46N3E) in the Air Force and I'm currently at Wilford Hall Medical Center, transitioning to Brooke Army Medical Center in the next few months. Let me know if you have any other questions!

I also have lots of friends in the Army Nurse Corps and I have loved getting to work jointly with the Army, so that wouldn't be a bad option either. I don't know much about the Navy, but it's probably be good too.

Good luck,

Capt Studley

Hello Capt. Studley, I just got selected in the Air Force April 2011 boards and will be leaving for COT in October 17 and will be doing NTP in Cincinnati from Nov. 28-Feb.15 and will be stationed with my wife and 2 children in lackland, TX working in Med. Surg. I see that Wilford Hall has combined with Brooke Army Hospital. I was wondering if you knew any details with whether I would be working in wilford hall or brooke for Med. Surg.? We are also in the process of looking for a safe place to live in, but at the same time affordable with BAH allowance. We are also looking at sending our kids to cornerstone christian academy. So I would like to make sure we live in a place that is convenient for our commute to work and for the kids. Any other tips? Thanks!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Anesthesia.
For sure Scott has been downgraded from hospital to clinic - ER.

What about Yokota? Still a large hospital

Osan, Korea - not a big hospital - they ship the cool stuff to the 121 Evac hospital at Yongsan Army Base in Seoul.

The last I heard Yokota had a two bed ICU.

Nellis and Elmendorf are DOD/VA joint venture hospitals. It makes for interesting dynamics working with both systems under one hospital.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in PICU.

All Wilford Hall Inpatient will be moved to BAMC in the near future. I think the deadline is September of this year. Multiple units have already moved and are integrated into BAMC. Our unit was the first to go last year. As a med surg nurse you may spend the first part of your tour at Wilford Hall, but the remainder and majority of your time will likely be at BAMC. BAMC has tons of real estate that's actively being converted to accommodate the remainder of Wilford Hall's inapatient traffic. The goal is for Wilford Hall to be an outpatient facility while BAMC is the Inpatient facility.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment