Medical School Advisors Visit Walter Reed National Military Medical Center

Photo By Jeremy Todd | Director of Oncology at WRNMMC, Dr. Craig Shrivel, COL (Ret) leads the tour of the John P Murtha Cancer Center at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Dr. Shriver just recently retired as an oncologist from the Army said he “loved serving the Army’s beneficiary” so much he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to continue his service. Medical school advisors from several colleges came to Maryland to meet with researchers and doctors at Walter Reed National Military Medical Centers (WRNMMC) and Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR). They were active participants in 1st Army’s Medical Recruiting Battalion’s Ed Tour. Educator tours are designed to be professionally enriching experiences for all educators and key influencers in order to become informed supporters who can publicize and promote Army Medical opportunities with students, graduates, residents, post-doctoral candidates, and licensed health care professionals.  

BETHESDA, MD, UNITED STATES

07.24.2018

Story by Jeremy Todd 

1ST Medical Recruiting Battalion

FORT MEADE, Md. – 1st and 3rd US Army Medical Recruiting Battalions joined forces in order to show prominent medical school pre-health advisors the benefits of choosing an Army healthcare career over the civilian sector. They had the honor of visiting with staff at Walter Reed National Military Medical Centers (WRNMMC) and Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) July 17, 2018. Pre-health advisors from Brown University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Michigan State University, St. John's University, Georgetown University, Thomas Jefferson University, Hunter College, Boston College, and Paris Simulation Center of Louisville attended the event that highlighted the benefits of considering a U.S. Army Medical Department (AMEDD) career in the Medical Corps. Following the morning briefings, they had the unique opportunity to tour both facilities - WRNMMC and WRAIR allowing them to experience both patient care and research opportunities in the military.

Chief Recruiter and Commanding general of US Army Recruiting Command, Major General Jeffrey Snow stressed the importance of building bonds within the community. Educators and advisors are the “key that unlocks the opportunities for medical students to become military healthcare providers.”

When asked about the success of the education tour, 1st Recruiting Battalion’s commander, LTC Merbin Carattini, said what impressed him the most was “to see the reactions of the educators who spent the day with the Army's best and brightest medical staff. They not only serve our nation's service members and their families directly but also the American people through research and discoveries.”

3rd Recruiting Battalion’s commander, LTC John Ament said getting this valuable information on Army programs to influencers of medical students is instrumental in maintaining a credible medical force.

The pre-health advisors received insight about military programs from both WRNMCC staff and Army representatives. NCC Graduate Medical Education Director, Col Maureen Peterson MD talked about her time doing research for the Army. She says she is unsure if she would have gotten the same opportunities to be a leader, or be exposed to the same fellowship opportunities, had she been in the civilian sector. It just so happens that COL Peterson was born at WRNMMC, but that doesn’t cloud the fact that she “cherishes the opportunity to serve these heroes and really enjoys listening to their stories.”

1st U.S. Army Medical Recruiting Battalion Educational Support Specialist, Dave Dormann talked about various scholarships like the Health Professions Scholarship Programs (HPSP) and Army-sponsored test programs like March2Success. March2Success has added free full-length practice tests for the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT), the Dental Admissions Test (DAT), as well as a variety of nursing tests. Students can take these exams as many times as they want to improve their scores when the time comes to take the actual exam.

“Pre health Advisors found this information very interesting as a tool for them and their students. The more practice exams the students take, the better they are with the actual exam. Advisors can use the results as a measure to help guide their students. This is our chance to build an even stronger bond with our schools by providing such a valuable tool. Educators and taxpayers alike are the shareholders of Army Medicine," added Dormann.

To learn more about the free program, visit www.march2success.com
To learn more about Army Healthcare, visit www.goarmy.com/amedd

Media interested in interviewing a representative to discuss use of the March2Success, the HPSP program, or the Ed Tour can contact Jeremy Todd with U.S. Army Recruiting Battalion, Fort Meade, Md. at 301.677.5489 or [e-mail].

• Date Taken: 07.24.2018
• Date Posted: 08.07.2018 09:21
• Story ID: 287101
• Location: BETHESDA, MD, US