i am attending oblc march 29. i am a new grad nurse and i have never been in the military before. i DO NOT want to be "that guy" at oblc and stick out because ive never been in the army before. i am a disciplined person and very excited to get going, but i will appreciate any advice anyone has regarding what to bring, and how to prepare for life at oblc and life in the army in general.
also, i decided to go to fort hood for my 1st assignment, where i will do my residency nursing program prior to my ICU course guarantee. has anyone completed the army nursing residency program? is it different for new grads with no prior service? i hear the timeline varies... any specific advice on being successful in the residency program?
if anyone else if attending oblc in march 2010, id love to talk.
Driving is a great idea! You will make friends very fast :) I was stuck there without transportation - had to beg for rides, waste money on taxi, etc. Wasnt fun. We would get released early some days, but the bus wasnt scheduled till 1930 - we were living off post at Holiday Inn. So it was a headache!
When you are at Camp. Bullis, dont do stupid stuff like having a family bring you out a deck of cards, or go running outside the fence by yourself.
Food sucked, and actually they ran out few days - you get stuck with MRE for dinner. So I brought protein bars, etc. - or get in the line early
There is a food truck that comes over daily - great food. Bring cash!!!!!!
Thanks for your suggestions. I am glad I am driving, and I will make sure not to volunteer for combative stuff, but then we will get deployed at some point or another, isn't it?
Ben-RN, I wanted to so live in Austin as well, but I realized it was far in terms of commute, but at least not far enough to visit and have fun once in awhile. I am looking forward to embracing and immersing in the breathtaking landscapes of the area around there. That is why I have been thinking of Belton area, I also like running outside, so thought it would be an ideal place to live, run, and serve my country.
Woah!
I was stationed at Hood for 4 years ('02-06) and knew several people who lived in Belton, Georgetown and Lampasas(these are all 30-45 min away). I would not initially recommend living in Austin due to the fact that the "quick route" (from Austin I35N to FM 440) can get tricky in bad weather(flooding, icy) and 30 miles is 2 lane road in the woods(really dark and isolated, patchy cell reception), and I think it has been "off limits to soldiers" at times due to high traffic fatalities. Your daily commute from Austin would be no less than 76 miles, and that is if you lived in NW Austin (Lakeline, Balcones Woods, Cedar Park areas)
The people who lived in Belton seemed to enjoy themselves, but IMH it is just easier to live in Killeen, Copperas Cove or Harker Heights. The AM traffic on post can be crazy, and more than likely you will be using the main gate(closest to Darnall) I can recommend an apartment complex in Killeen, it was quiet (even with a lot of Mil. Families) and only 2 exits away from the Main gate.
Oh, to surely make you the coolest new arrival...check out Shipley's Doughnuts. A doughnut or a kolachie is worth an extra 3 miles.
Thank you so much for your recommendations, tips and precautions...
Please, will appreciate your recommendation for apartment complex in Kileen. I am planning on driving to Ft. Hood area to check out the place during one of the weekends during BOLC days. I would love to check out all these places...Harker Heights, Belton, Kileen and so on.
By your recommendation, it sounds like traffic can be quite intense and tricky with everyone trying to get in @ Darnall around the same time. Btw, how was your experience at Darnall, did you like the overall experience?
And of course, I will definitely check out the Shipley's doughnuts, and if they have good coffee there, definite icing on the cake.
Thank you so much for your recommendations, tips and precautions...
Please, will appreciate your recommendation for apartment complex in Kileen. I am planning on driving to Ft. Hood area to check out the place during one of the weekends during BOLC days. I would love to check out all these places...Harker Heights, Belton, Kileen and so on.
By your recommendation, it sounds like traffic can be quite intense and tricky with everyone trying to get in @ Darnall around the same time. Btw, how was your experience at Darnall, did you like the overall experience?
And of course, I will definitely check out the Shipley's doughnuts, and if they have good coffee there, definite icing on the cake.
Thanks.
I PM'd you the complexes. I was enlisted (Aviation) so I did not go to Darnall everyday. I do know from the visits that I made there, the parking can get crazy. Oh, and when you come in the main gate there is a bypass that you can take that will take you straight to DACH. The hospital is in the middle of main post near III Corps. It should be easy to find
No NTP is available in another places as well. That's what I think.
I am also stationed at Fort Hood, joining there in January. I heard that Darnall is a smaller community hospital compared to other army medical centers and seems like has more clinics and outpatient services than inpatient services. I have been working in cardiac unit for 2 years as a civilian nurse and wanted to go into critical areas esp ICU. I doubt whether Darnall has critical units and looks like all the critical cases go to BMC. I just wanted to find out from people who work there what units are available and options available for RNs who wants to work in critical care setting.
LOL Sounds like some people are that high speed?? Dont volunteer for combatives?? Hmmm I'm already missing my 19K brothers in arms!! and I dont get to OBLC til Aug. '11
MilSpecRN, BSN, RN
20 Posts
Driving is a great idea! You will make friends very fast :) I was stuck there without transportation - had to beg for rides, waste money on taxi, etc. Wasnt fun. We would get released early some days, but the bus wasnt scheduled till 1930 - we were living off post at Holiday Inn. So it was a headache!
When you are at Camp. Bullis, dont do stupid stuff like having a family bring you out a deck of cards, or go running outside the fence by yourself.
Food sucked, and actually they ran out few days - you get stuck with MRE for dinner. So I brought protein bars, etc. - or get in the line early
There is a food truck that comes over daily - great food. Bring cash!!!!!!