Militray Nursing

Tim-GNP · Mar 19, 2001

I am also a male, an I was given the same opportunity [except mine was the army]. I don't know why, but I thought about it. Then I was given advice, by someone older and much wiser than myself. A very good, older nurse friend gave me this advice.... "Tim" she said, "your mouth will get you killed in there!" She was right- I was too much of an independent thinker and too 'free spirited' to be a member of the armed forces.

Look deep into yourself, only you will know if you could tolerate 'orders' about time to eat, when to exercise, when to get OOB.

Good luck with whatever you do.

Tim

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Tis with our judgements as our watches, none go just alike, yet, each believes his own.

-Alexander Pope

Navy Nurse · Mar 19, 2001

Send me your questions. I have been in the Navy for 22 years and moonlighted in the civilian world too, so I can give you some views on both.

Tim, I don't have anyone tell me when to eat or get up. Each sector has their rules to follow and believe me, there are people that you work for that tell you when to come to work and when you can go home.

Tim-GNP · Mar 19, 2001

My recruiter told me the same thing... two friends that graduated a year before me [and joined the army to get their loans paid, one male, one female] told me something QUITE different.

2ndCareerRN · Mar 20, 2001

Send me your questions. I have been in the Navy for 22 years

Here is one for you navy nurse.

I spent 21 yrs in the Navy and retired a a CPO. After retirement I finally figured out what I wanted to be when I grew up..a nurse.

Now as I try to get back in the Navy I have hit a brick wall. If the shortage of nurses is as bad in the Navy as it is in the civilian sector, why is the upper age limit for the navy 35 and the Army at 47?

I would love to get back in the Navy, as a nurse, but it does not look as though it is going to happen. Right now I am researching my options as a reserve nurse and if it does not pan out I will try another branch.

If it matters, I am still within the age window for the Army. I am hoping my experience as an LPN in ICU and an RN in the ER will help me some.

Haji

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Haji

We live in an age that if you order a pizza delivered to your house and call 911 at the same time to report a life or death situation....my money is on the pizza arriving first! Learn to protect yourself, become a wolf among the sheep!

Navy Nurse · Mar 20, 2001

Haji,

I guess the first thing I would ask you would be why would you want to go back in the Navy. You are already getting retirement pay and with the civilian jobs paying good right now, I don't understand why you would give that up. Especially to become an Ensign (hehe).

I don't know why the age limits are different but then again there are in education level and knowledge level differences into which service you can get into also.

Usually the Navy will give you 1:1 credit for your years in service for the age waiver and I know for a fact that they do age waivers for people to come in. They make you sign papers stating you will not be eligible for retirement benefits. Contact the Navy Nurse Corps in Washington D.C. for more on the guidelines. Don't just take the word of any recruiter, there are ways to get into the system.

Finally, the Navy, in most Nurses opinions, does not have a nursing shortage.

Good luck

2ndCareerRN · Mar 20, 2001

Navy Nurse,

you are right about a lot of that. Besides, I really don't want to go back to Ca. I was thinking along the lines of going back in as a reservist...not active..I am still looking at a lot of other options right now, but, I will probably stay a civilian, get 1/2 my retired pay..the other half goes somewhere else.. and go back to school for my master's.

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Haji

We live in an age that if you order a pizza delivered to your house and call 911 at the same time to report a life or death situation....my money is on the pizza arriving first! Learn to protect yourself, become a wolf among the sheep!

cmggriff · Mar 20, 2001

Charles,

I have been in the Army and the Air Force.

I have a total of 16 years of Federal service. I got fed up with the pencil pushers who seem to be in control. All of the branches are making a lot of noise about quality of life in the military. But it is just lip service. When one of my best people was thrown out for being overweight in spite of his documented thyroid condition, I called it quits. If I get called up for another war, I'll go. You don't have so much crap to deal with in a combat zone. But i won't serve in the peace time time military any more.