My son called me a few days after Christmas. He was being put on med hold for a possible stress fracture in his foot. His MRI follow up was supposed to be January 4th. I assumed he would let me know something about his condition since graduation is coming up this weekend (January 9th and 10th). But I have heard nothing.
Anyone have a resource/contact/etc. that I could use to find something out?
I’d hate to show up in San Antonio to find out he wasn’t graduating with this class, but I’d hate even worse to NOT show and he graduates....
So, help?
Thanks in advance.

That’s too bad.

If he’s on “med hold” then he will likely be recycled into another platoon after he recovers.

Call his recruiter, (s)he will be be able to get you whatever info you need.

Call his company commander, as long as you know the unit info you can Google the number. Give them a call and get the info. You might have to call a few numbers to get a hold of the right person.

If it's the same as it was at Paris Island, it means his training has stopped, and he will need to wait until he is healed to rejoin a new class that is at the same point he was held. Being as close to graduation as he was, they may let him graduate as long as he is healed.

There should be a number at the base you can call to find out.

Don't call his unit. Recruiter would be a better option.

Yes, the recruiter is the best POC

Medical hold simply means just that; his training is on hold until he’s well enough to recover and join another Basic Training flight. He may have to start over depending on how far along he was.

1986 I developed a stress fracture just below my left knee. Navy put me in med hold on crutches for 73 days, once healed, I was placed into a boot camp company that was at the same week of training as I was previously at before med hold. So basically I was in boot camp 73 days longer than normal. Med hold was also a hold on training.

REST OF THE STORY:

While in med hold, the Navy made me sign a PEB (medical) discharge. The doctor treating me said that once a stress fracture, people are prone to stress fractures. Once healed, I was to go home. Navy won't discharge and send someone home until after they're fixed.

At the time I was 33, an "elderly" recruit. Near the end of my time healing and about to be sent home, I went to Balboa Hospital (San Diego) early one morning and talked with about 6 different doctors, one after the other, mostly up the chain of command with a sincere desire to stay in the Navy. I needed to find a way to rescind the medical discharge and remain a sailor. FINALLY after much pleading, a doctor wrote off on my staying Navy and the medical discharge disappeared. I told the doc that at my age, if there had been anything at home with a career future, I wouldn't have joined the Navy in the first place. That was a partial truth, because I had been a machinist. Operator and supervisor. Thing was, I was sincere about wanting to stay in the military.

I had a 20 year career in the Navy, retired Chief, and never once did I ever again have a stress fracture.

EDIT: I think my stress fracture had more to do with bad nutrition and too much drinking for too long before I joined the military than anything else. Once I was taking better care of myself, everything improved.

Air Force Basic is 8.5 weeks long. Week 6 is Beast Week, where they live in the field. Week 7 is when they take all the tests/exams. and week 8 is family/graduation week. if your Airman is on medical hold, he may still graduate if he got far enough along in basic. From what I read here, his medical evaluation is pending so he probably doesn't know yet what's going to happen. If he cannot he graduate he may be recycled with a new graduation date. He will be given the opportunity to call home if he is not going to graduate as originally scheduled.


Here is a really good family web site for parents of trainees. There is a link here to join a med hold group for family members.

http://afwm.org/life-during-bmt/med-hold-get-fit/

Thanks guys. I fired up Facebook after a several month hiatus to sign up for the med hold group. I’ll still call his recruiter on Monday. I’ll keep y’all posted. One of the things that concerns me now is the close proximity to graduation (next weekend). I need to know which way to jump.

The base should have a public affairs officer whose staff will be able to get you the info you need.

quote:

Originally posted by SpinZone:
The base should have a public affairs officer whose staff will be able to get you the info you need.

Yeah, I would support contacting the base. They'd have the shortest route to getting the information plus I'm sure they're used to parents calling. Some of those calls may be frivolous but yours isn't. I remember a couple of recruits were told by the company commander to write letters home because their parents called about not hearing from them.

Contacting the recruiter just adds one unnecessary step. He's going to have to add that to his list of things to do and he'd rather spend time getting people signed up than following up on someone who's already in the system. Besides that, he'll still have to call the base to find out anything.

When I was in boot camp for the CG, I dislocated my shoulder. I got a two week stay in the infirmary. I got an x Ray and an army doc at Ft. Dix reviewed my X-ray. I spent two weeks in the infirmary with my arm in a sling and I helped feed other recruits who had their teeth pulled. Then I went to a new company that was in the same training cycle as me...later I found where a “doctor”made an entry into my
Medical record that said I had a motivation issue...but eventually 21 years later and after achieving Chief, I retired.

Call the recruiter on Monday and let him do some calling around.

If he in his final week - he will need to pass the final PT Test (nothing brutal but he will need to run a 1.5M +)

He will also need to perform parade and marching movements for evaluation.

If he can support his foot/stabilize it - he might be able to squeek through.

But - what is his career field choice? If it is something non-administrative - he may end up on medical hold anyway given the physical nature of his chosen Tech Field. (ex. Security Police)

The recruiter has an inside pipeline. He doesn't get credit for the recruit until they finish basic so he has a vested interest.

So....I called his recruiter. I was told that he (recruiter) doesn’t have any way of finding out any info and that it is up to the indiviual(the recruit) to let folks know what is going on.
He (recruiter) suggested I call Lackland directly. That really doesn’t seem, to me, like the best way to find something out....

quote:

Week 6 is Beast Week, where they live in the field.

When did they start going into the field?

quote:

He (recruiter) suggested I call Lackland directly. That really doesn’t seem, to me, like the best way to find something out....

Why not? It's no different than any other base? They have admin staff like any other squadron. I'm sure they handle all sorts of requests.

Shaql
Last few years I guess. I know a couple guys that got out w/in the last 5 years and they spent a few days on a catered camp out.

Calling the base: I know what it’s like finding stuff out on the Army Depot where I work. I would hope a sho’nuff military base would be different, but...
Also, I don’t want to bring any unecessary heat on my son. But it may very well come down to that.

quote:

Originally posted by Shaql:

quote:

Week 6 is Beast Week, where they live in the field.

When did they start going into the field?

quote:

He (recruiter) suggested I call Lackland directly. That really doesn’t seem, to me, like the best way to find something out....

Why not? It's no different than any other base? They have admin staff like any other squadron. I'm sure they handle all sorts of requests.

They started going into the field in basic when the ops tempo picked up post 9/11. There just were not enough hotels in the desert so we had to learn to live in tents and crap in a trench, and shoot guns and stuff.

Air Force basic has changed tremendously since GWOT.


Hudr your son should have called someone if there was a change.

quote:

Originally posted by hudr:...I don’t want to bring any unecessary heat on my son. But it may very well come down to that.

Your son should have sent the "Dear folks, I am fine..." letter with his squadron, flight and possibly contact numbers to his Orderly Room (That's like the HR/Corporate office for his unit).

If so, contact them and let them know your concern, it should not result in any negative attention on him.

I wish him well.

Hayesgreener, sigmonkey;

I got a text and a short phone call when he was transferred, I just never got any definitive info. Lots of words like “possible” “may impact” etc. I figured I would hear something after his MRI follow up on the 4th, but who knows what kind of snafu could’ve happened along those lines.....
Like I said before, while I would hate to show up down there and NOT have him graduate, it would be even worse if I DIDNT show up and he does graduate.
I’ll get it figured out. Hell, y’all may know before the his mother does.