Is it possible as a medical student to shadow/get work experience with an army doctor?

Hello, Did you have any particular type of army doctor in mind? Most army doctors who work in secondary care work in NHS hospitals, depending on where your clinical placements are you may be able to speak to a military doctor in that hospital. Army GPs are unlikely to be able to facilitate a medical student doing shadowing or work experience due to the security clearance required to work on a military base. If you could give me an idea of what stage of your training you are at and where in the country you are based, I could try and find out if there are any opportunities available. Even if work experience is not possible, if you are considering joining as a doctor it can be useful to speak to someone face to face. If joining the Army is something you are considering, I would encourage you to start an application, you will have the opportunity to speak to serving doctors throughout the application process and learn more about the army in general. Starting an application and going through the process doesn't commit you to anything, and it will give you a feel for what the Army is like. I found the application process really helpful, in particular going on the familiarisation visit. You get talks from various doctors and you have the opportunity to speak informally to the medical officers only a few years ahead career wise. Please let me know if I can be of any more help, or if you have any other questions.

Thank you very much for your quick response. I am currently in my second year of medical school and I am in London. I appreciate shadowing at a military base may not be allowed but it would be incredible to speak to military doctors to find out more about their and perhaps your experiences? I haven't yet decided whether to go into primary or secondary care and which specialty i might pursue but I would be grateful for any insight from anyone with military experience. I will start the application perhaps to get more information as you suggested but if there is an opportunity to speak to anyone beforehand that would be amazing. Thank you for your help!

No problem, do you want to drop me an email and I am sure we can sort something out. [email protected]