waiting, Air Force Nurse Corps

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Hello all, I am new to this forum, but have been reading from it for some time. I am curious. Who is still waiting for the fully qualified selection status from Jan boards? It seems that AFPC is busy with other matters for the immediate future. I am waiting patiently....well not so patiently!

As a COT grad, I would highly recommend NOT renting the mess dress. We had two chaplains who did in my flight and it was a nightmare for them. They had to walk from the main gate to Shinbaum's (it's not outside the main gate - it's a ways away from the main gate, and the only reason I know this is because I've driven past it) because the flight commanders wouldn't let them drive, and the on-base taxis only go ON BASE. They had to go twice for fittings and it was difficult and a hassle - you have to get special permission to leave base - they both said it was a mess.

I went through in October 09 and there was no Capt Rella there as a flight CC. Believe me, we would've remembered a medical guy because most of the instructors are line officers. But ours was Major Smith, a prior service enlisted Master Sergeant, and he was AWESOME. We were his first flight!

If you can get the mess dress ahead of time, I highly recommend that as well. ANYTHING you can get done ahead of time is worth the effort. We only had 106 in my class and I was glad I already had my stuff done. I can't imagine it with 300 in the summer surge.

If you CAN'T get it done, don't worry - because it WILL get taken care of when you get there. If all you can do is buy socks and t-shirts, do it. Every little thing you do now is one less thing you have to do there.

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I will be stationed at Lackland in San Antonio, coming from Raleigh, NC. I think I have most things for COT except the Mess Dress which both my recruiter and his boss told me I wouldn't be needing (??) I guess I'll find out about that one. Where are you going to be stationed? I'm assuming you don't have to go to NTP?

I came out of the Raleigh office last year and they told me the same thing. I ignored them and went by the information on the COT website, and was glad I did, because BOY were they wrong - WAAAY wrong. If you don't have it when you get there, you'll be required to purchase it.

PS - I'm down here at Wilford Hall as well!

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Carolinapooh--is it true that nurses with experience are sent to work in the ED for a year then you will be assigned to a floor?

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No, it's not. If you have ED experience it's a possibility if the RN manager needs you you might get assigned to the ED, but it's not guaranteed.

I worked for two years in Duke University Hospital as a cancer nurse, and have been assigned to the DoD's only bone marrow transplant unit down here at Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland AFB, Texas.

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Specializes in Med/Surg.

acherri... the OTS website will tell you whether or not you need to purchase the mess dress. i just read on there that RCOT 10-02 didn't need to purchase the mess dress. check back on the site often. i know i do!

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carolinapooh,

So I just want to clarify that even if you go in with an ED identifier it does not mean you will be assigned in the ED? I will be going to Nellis. When do you find out where you will be working in the hospital? I was required to get ACLS prior to commissioning because of the identifier but I already had PALS, and TNCC. I didn't realize that I potentially would not work in the ED following COT, but I knew that later in my career that it could change.

I wanted to wait for the mess dress (maybe loose a few more lbs in COT) but I guess I will be getting everything before hand. Do you know if prior enlisted were able to take stripes off of service dress and reuse? Mine was just 6 months old when I got out.

midinphx,

Sorry :uhoh3: you don't get to relax yet but I wish I was getting ready to move now! At least I know not to expect orders in a timely fashion. lol. Good luck I hope it all comes together for you. How far in advance does TMO need orders to schedule your move?

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Got my orders! I didn't realize the orders were only two pages?? Also, orders say I have 12 days to go from Randolph to Lackland.....does this come out of your 30 days time off?

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Specializes in L&D, mother/baby, antepartum.

Also, one awesome Flt CC to watch for is Capt Rella... he's a CCATT RN... one of the few medical COT staffers. I believe he'll be there for y'all. :)

Oh my goodness, Capt Rella is awesome!!!! (although he was Lt Rella when I was there) He's a wealth of knowledge and a really great guy. He's got some really great stories. Glad to hear he is still around.

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Specializes in L&D, mother/baby, antepartum.
acherri... the OTS website will tell you whether or not you need to purchase the mess dress. i just read on there that RCOT 10-02 didn't need to purchase the mess dress. check back on the site often. i know i do!

If you are in a "summer surge" class then it's highly probable that you won't need it at COT. I was in a May class and they wouldn't even let us LOOK at the mess dress. There were too many people and too many fittings for the service dress that the seamstresses were overwhelmed. If they say you don't need it, then don't worry about it. You can buy it later if you'd like.

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carolinapooh,

So I just want to clarify that even if you go in with an ED identifier it does not mean you will be assigned in the ED? I will be going to Nellis. When do you find out where you will be working in the hospital? I was required to get ACLS prior to commissioning because of the identifier but I already had PALS, and TNCC. I didn't realize that I potentially would not work in the ED following COT, but I knew that later in my career that it could change.

I wanted to wait for the mess dress (maybe loose a few more lbs in COT) but I guess I will be getting everything before hand. Do you know if prior enlisted were able to take stripes off of service dress and reuse? Mine was just 6 months old when I got out.

midinphx,

Sorry :uhoh3: you don't get to relax yet but I wish I was getting ready to move now! At least I know not to expect orders in a timely fashion. lol. Good luck I hope it all comes together for you. How far in advance does TMO need orders to schedule your move?

No, I was talking about RNs with just general "experience", not an ED identifier. That's a whole different ball game.

I don't think the officer service dress and the enlisted service dress are the same. Also, the fabric may have changed and may no longer match the trousers, so you'd possibly have to buy one anyway.

I found out where I was going - base, facility, and hospital unit - when I got my acceptance offer. But of course we all know it's not going that way now.

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Got my orders! I didn't realize the orders were only two pages?? Also, orders say I have 12 days to go from Randolph to Lackland.....does this come out of your 30 days time off?

You're given three travel days to get from Montgomery, Alabama (which is where COT is, not Randolph - Randolph is Air Force Personnel HQ) to San Antonio.

If you take more than the three days, you're charged leave. If you don't have enough leave on the books to cover the leave you take (at the end of COT you will only have 2.5 days on the books) you'll go in the hole with leave.

Take it from a prior - don't ever, ever go in the hole on leave unless it's a dire emergency.

You're not given 30 days leave up front. You earn 2.5 days of leave for every thirty days served. Sick time, should you need it, is considered time served (in other words, you'll never see sick leave on your Leave and Earnings Statement - the LES - because you don't earn it. You're given it). You also earn leave while you're on leave. (The military is the only job you'll ever have where you can take 30 days leave and come back to find you've got 2.5 days on the books.)

If you were prior service and had leave on the books, you're authorized to burn off 12 days leave - it's called leave en route. If you don't have it, you can't take it.

Orders are sort of anticlimactic. You're expecting something fancy, and you get a document that looks as though it was created in Microsoft Word. All that excitement...and you get THAT.

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Carolinapooh,

So nice to be able to talk to someone on this forum with knowledge about what is ahead of us. Thanks for all the info. I was somewhat confused about possibly not being assigned to the ED but whatever happens ... I am just excited to be a part of the Air Force again. :yeah:

So I will go check out the service dress requirement and see where I stand. I don't remember that they were different but that doesn't mean that I am correct. I just want to put those uniforms hanging in my closet back to use, if possible. I could donate them to Airmen's attic. :nurse:

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