SOCM Questions

[Huggybear]

Let me preface this with an apology if it happens to be in the wrong place. The 18D forum seemed most appropriate to me since, to my understanding, the SOCM course is a component of the 18D course. If I'm incorrect in that I'd appreciate correction. I did do a search for posts regarding SOCM, but didn't find exactly what I am looking for.

I just finished .civ paramedic school, and discovered that I love the work even more than I thought I might. I also discovered that the active Army has the ACASP program, and that National Registry credentials of Basic or better get you into the final 10 weeks of the program. Finally, I discovered that there are Army units which need 68Ws, and recruit them if they meet other standards in addition to the MOS.

My immediate question is this: Will skipping the initial 6 weeks of 68W school *in any way* compromise my ability to treat my future patients, or am I simply missing out on EMT-B testing and the usual recruit fun and games? I'm not looking for a shortcut, I'm looking for education.

Now, subsequent to 68W school, my understanding is that I would go to Airborne school en route to my first PCS station, and there spend 2 or so months in "green platoon", which would be followed by many, many hours in the Bn aid station, and after being judged functional there, sent to Bragg for SOCM.

Questions about that process are these:

1) Are there course texts available that I might study beforehand? I'm interested in doing as much prep work as possible, and reading the material I'm expected to learn long before it's an issue helps me a lot.

2) If it's kosher to even discuss, what are some of the procedures and practices taught at the SOCM course?

3) Do any 18Ds or SOCM graduates have any advice, stories, etc to share?

Also, in case anyone cares, there's an awful lot of what seem to be fairy tales out there regarding the 18D course and SOCM. I think the biggest one I've heard is that graduates of either can "challenge the boards" for PA or RN licensure (or that it's "the same thing as..."), but I've read here that that's a myth, and confirmed same with the Dept of Health & Human Services here in Texas. The active recruiter I'm working with here in Houston gave me that one the other day.

You hear other kinds of things that sound far-fetched, e.g. that SOCM grads can perform appendectomies and various other types of surgeries in the field, that they do mass-cas exercises, and on and on. As I'm a noob I can't really offer any sort of real retort to this because I haven't been, but separating the wheat from the chaff is a hell of a task at times.

I'm trying to be calm about going, knowing already that they'll teach me what they'll teach me when I get there, but I'm enthusiastic about this stuff and I want to know it cold when I hit my unit. I had a particularly good instructor in paramedic school who once said that every time you aren't paying attention in class, every time you take a shortcut, every time you fail to study the things you need to know to do this stuff well, you're making a decision to screw over your future patients. I agree with that.

Overall, if anyone can hook me up with some intel and help me prepare a little before I launch, I'd be in your debt. I'd be grateful for intel on the 68W course, too, if anyone's up on it, since that's more immediate.

Thanks in advance!

//B