Fill out this form if you want to learn more about military jobs and the Air Force.
Initial Training
It starts with your acceptance into medical school. You will have already met any previous educational requirements. For those candidates at this stage, the reasons for considering a position as a physician in the Air Force may include both a genuine interest in the specific duties they will have and the financial benefits available via scholarships such as the Health Professions Scholarship Program. The Air Force offers programs for three and four-years that cover your expenses like tuition, books, and other fees.
Additionally, the program gives candidates a monthly stipend to help cover living expenses such as rent. This option allows you to complete your training as a doctor while also serving at rank in the Air Force.
There are other starting points. You could already be involved in your residency program and choose to receive financial assistance. One of the points to remember is that the residency program must be approved by the Accreditation Council For Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) as well as further accreditation via the American Osteopathic Association (AOA).
Any financial assistance for residents would involve supplementing their residency pay with a monthly stipend amount covering the equivalent of eleven and a half months. The last two weeks you would be a commissioned Air Force officer and receive appropriate pay. The main point is that you must first be certified as a medical school graduate and have received residency training.
Other Requirements
Those doctors moving from civilian practice to the Air Force must meet other academic, physical, and even moral requirements in order to be military physicians. You will take a four-week course at Maxwell Air Force Base to acclimate you to the military lifestyle and receive physical conditioning so you are ready to serve. Those who wish to be Emergency Medicine Physicians take all of this a step further since they must have prior residency experience in the emergency room and other educational experience approved by the American Board of Emergency Medicine with a letter of eligibility.
Since you are entering a specialized field of medicine, you will also need education relevant to military conditions, specifically to the Air Force. Combat casualty treatments, treatments for chemical and biological toxins, as well as injuries caused by exposure to nuclear radiation.
Responsibilities
As an Air Force Emergency Medicine Physician you will be called to act in a variety of situations including the battlefield. Your services will be needed to treat all manner of conditions both minor and severe. You need the experience and training to manage those often high-pressure situations effectively, diagnosing and caring for the injured in dangerous situations. You also may be in the role of disaster management during natural disaster at home or abroad, providing essential humanitarian aid. You have to be prepared for triage situations where immediate medical attention is needed for survival.
Those doctors in this position may also be involved in the training of other physicians who’ve made the decision to become a member of the United States Air Force. You may also be in charge of hospitals or directing operations in other pre-hospital settings.
By becoming an Air Force Emergency Medicine Physician, you get the chance to make a difference in the lives of the men and women who put themselves in harm’s way to serve the United States. That knowledge offers rewards beyond the financial security and unique working environment. You will feel like you are contributing to not only the welfare of the soldiers you treat but to your country as well.