Dodmerb consultants? Yes or No?

Agree with the positive reviews. We spoke with Dr Merchant, but did not engage his services. He was very kind. I am an M.D., so was able to negotiate the process successfully. I think if you have a medical issue and no medical or military background, it may be worth it for peace of mind. It will also be important to complete the evaluation in a timely manner. The Waiver authorities are much less busy earlier in the season. I think they get backed up as more requests accumulate
 
Dr. Merchant spent time talking with DS, not only to address potential medical DQ, but also to stress need for plan B, C & D....he was very upfront and honest. We did eventually retain his services and for DS's situation, it was worth every penny.
 
We too engaged Dr. Merchant. He was very knowledgable and probably did offer some insights that were not found here in SAF that we found useful. Our only issue was timeliness of responses which was a bit frustrating through the anxiety ridden process. When engaged, he was very thorough and expert in his counsel. A bit on the pricey side relative to the consult received but don't believe there is another source quite as knowledgable and completely on your side. Would definitely take advantage of the first free consultation as it was very helpful for us. Good luck!
 
We utilized Dr. Merchant's services for DS who had a WP LOA, a complicated medical history and expected to get DQ'd during the DoDMERB process. I have nothing but positive feedback regarding Dr. Merchant's services as he provided excellent guidance and advice which helped us proactively and successfully navigate the waiver process.

Would DS have received his waiver without Dr. Merchant's service? Possibly, but he probably would have run out of time had we not taken the preemptive steps that Dr. Merchant suggested to send a comprehensive package to the waiver authority as opposed to being prompted for AMI's.

In this case the money was well spent and worth every penny. That being said, obviously, such a consultant is only needed in very specialized and specific circumstances - I think Dr. Merchant would concur.
 
Has anyone used the Dodmerb consultants? I contacted them and they contacted me back and offered to call and discuss our situation. However, I am still waiting to find out if there is a cost and how much? I am also wondering if it will be worth it.
I sent you a private conversation to answer this question.
Motorguy, I am also wondering about DoDMERB Consultants. Could you please let me know your thoughts? Thanks.
 
Has anyone used the Dodmerb consultants? I contacted them and they contacted me back and offered to call and discuss our situation. However, I am still waiting to find out if there is a cost and how much? I am also wondering if it will be worth it.
I sent you a private conversation to answer this question.
Motorguy, I am also wondering about DoDMERB Consultants. Could you please let me know your thoughts? Thanks.

Like others, I've had extremely positive experiences with DODMERB consultants. I am fairly certain the consult is free so you really have very little to risk. Good luck and feel free to PM me if you'd like specific feedback or questions.
 
When applicants work with the official DODMERB organization, there is no charge for that. Hiring a 'consultant' which is what this thread started out asking, WOULD involve a cost and there is no guarantee of any better results. The original thread started back in April.
 
DODMERB decides whether or not to disqualify; waiver decisions are made by the individual accession sources and NOT by DODMERB. For USNA at least, the final waiver decision rests with the Superintendent. That decision, of course, is influenced by the USNA medical folks. Thus, DODMERB expertise only helps to a certain extent.

Some conditions are pretty much black/white. If you're missing a kidney, you're missing a kidney. Others, such as asthma or allergies, are more of a grey area. So, first, consider your condition and whether additional info, tests, etc. will really change anything.

Second, it's not just about YOUR condition. It's about how the entering class for each SA shapes up. For example, USNA has to have enough people entering with each class such that -- assuming some will become medically DQ while there -- there is a sufficient number upon graduation who can commission unrestricted line. Thus, there are limits on the number of those with colorblindness or certain other medical issues who will be admitted b/c they can't have too many at the end who can't be commissioned as line officers. You can't control that.

My gut feel -- and it's only that -- is that a medical consultant will give you peace of mind that you've done everything you can do. I doubt that, at the end of the day, he/she will influence the outcome. If your peace of mind is worth the cost of the service, then it's probably worth doing (for you at least).
 
Has anyone used the Dodmerb consultants? I contacted them and they contacted me back and offered to call and discuss our situation. However, I am still waiting to find out if there is a cost and how much? I am also wondering if it will be worth it.
I sent you a private conversation to answer this question.
Motorguy, I am also wondering about DoDMERB Consultants. Could you please let me know your thoughts? Thanks.

I have used DoDMERB Consultants and would rather you private message me about it. I will be glad to answer any questions I can. I believe you need a few responses to your post in order to be able to do Private message.
 
From comments I have seen here the last couple years, it sounds like Dr. Merchant is an honorable guy, and is looking to help people instead of chasing an easy buck. He's got the background and tickets to know what he is talking about, That being said, what I don't know is how he is perceived by his former peers as DODMERB. Could his involvement have a negative impact (e.g., one of his former peers resenting that he is out peddling his knowledge) -- who knows ?

I suspect that most of the medical decisions are based on objective standards (i.e. black and white), and involvement of the consultant is not necessary or helpful. When you get into the subjective (grey) determinations, a consultant may help or hurt --really up to you and what you think is best for your peace of mind.
 
From comments I have seen here the last couple years, it sounds like Dr. Merchant is an honorable guy, and is looking to help people instead of chasing an easy buck. He's got the background and tickets to know what he is talking about, That being said, what I don't know is how he is perceived by his former peers as DODMERB. Could his involvement have a negative impact (e.g., one of his former peers resenting that he is out peddling his knowledge) -- who knows ?

I suspect that most of the medical decisions are based on objective standards (i.e. black and white), and involvement of the consultant is not necessary or helpful. When you get into the subjective (grey) determinations, a consultant may help or hurt --really up to you and what you think is best for your peace of mind.

We utilized Dr. Merchant in anticipation of DS getting a medical disqualification (which he did). DoDMERB Consultant's helped with identifying specialists with appropriate backgrounds, reviewed letters and ensured the package was "complete" prior to being sent to the Waiver Authority. Since the waiver decision was outside of the scope of any former peers, I don't suspect there was any negative impact.

While I agree that the the medical decision at DoDMERB is black and white based on established military standards, the waiver process and decision appears to be more nebulous. In DS's situation, we were only going to get one shot at navigating the waiver process and the decision to use a consultant was one that I have no regrets making.
 
Has anyone used the Dodmerb consultants? I contacted them and they contacted me back and offered to call and discuss our situation. However, I am still waiting to find out if there is a cost and how much? I am also wondering if it will be worth it.
I sent you a private conversation to answer this question.
Motorguy, I am also wondering about DoDMERB Consultants. Could you please let me know your thoughts? Thanks.

I have used DoDMERB Consultants and would rather you private message me about it. I will be glad to answer any questions I can. I believe you need a few responses to your post in order to be able to do Private message.
I sent you a private message. Thanks!
 
We used DodMERB Consultants over a year ago, and I highly recommend Dr. Merchant. Back to an earlier post, I can assure you Dr. Merchant is not getting rich off of this service; his fees are very reasonable and don't come anywhere close to compensating him for his time. In my case, I became concerned after DD submitted the DoDMERB forms that we had raised a red flag with an asthma diagnosis from childhood. I contacted Dr. Merchant who was able to help us get ahead of the DQ's that were coming. This is a stressful time. My DD had an LOA in hand in September; I was not going to risk a medical DQ killing her dreams if there was any way to prevent it. As a civilian with absolutely no military or medical knowledge, I felt out of my league. Dr. Merchant helped me anticipate what was coming next and figure out what our next steps were.

If you have experience in the military, a medical background, or if your medical history is 100% clean, then you probably do not need his services. If you have any concerns regarding medical history or something turns up during the DoDMERB process, contact him for a consultation.

He is a busy man, and at times there are delays in communication, but he saw us through the process giving excellent advice along the way. My DD received waivers to all 3 academies she applied to. Would she have received them without his services? Maybe. But it was worth the peace of mind to me knowing I had done all I could to help DD.[/QUOTE

Thanks Partyof5--Is a sixteen day "delay in communication" in line with your experience? We retained the firm and have not received a reply to voice mails or emails since paying the fee.
 
Has anyone used the Dodmerb consultants? I contacted them and they contacted me back and offered to call and discuss our situation. However, I am still waiting to find out if there is a cost and how much? I am also wondering if it will be worth it.
I sent you a private conversation to answer this question.

Hi Motorguy- we are also looking for information about the firm. Have not heard back from them in 16 days since paying the fee. Not sure how to send a private message to you?
 
@HEMOM you must have 5 posts before you can private message.
Be persistent, Not the first time I have read about delayed responses from consultants.
 
Has anyone used the Dodmerb consultants? I contacted them and they contacted me back and offered to call and discuss our situation. However, I am still waiting to find out if there is a cost and how much? I am also wondering if it will be worth it.
I sent you a private conversation to answer this question.

Hi Motorguy- we are also looking for information about the firm. Have not heard back from them in 16 days since paying the fee. Not sure how to send a private message to you?
Try calling Dr. Merchant's cell. I know he is a practicing physician so the evenings and Fridays seemed to work best.
 
We utilized Dr. Merchant's services for DS who had a WP LOA, a complicated medical history and expected to get DQ'd during the DoDMERB process. I have nothing but positive feedback regarding Dr. Merchant's services as he provided excellent guidance and advice which helped us proactively and successfully navigate the waiver process.

Would DS have received his waiver without Dr. Merchant's service? Possibly, but he probably would have run out of time had we not taken the preemptive steps that Dr. Merchant suggested to send a comprehensive package to the waiver authority as opposed to being prompted for AMI's.

In this case the money was well spent and worth every penny. That being said, obviously, such a consultant is only needed in very specialized and specific circumstances - I think Dr. Merchant would concur.

Where do you get information on Dr Merchant? I've seen his name quite a few times on here.
 
We utilized Dr. Merchant's services for DS who had a WP LOA, a complicated medical history and expected to get DQ'd during the DoDMERB process. I have nothing but positive feedback regarding Dr. Merchant's services as he provided excellent guidance and advice which helped us proactively and successfully navigate the waiver process.

Would DS have received his waiver without Dr. Merchant's service? Possibly, but he probably would have run out of time had we not taken the preemptive steps that Dr. Merchant suggested to send a comprehensive package to the waiver authority as opposed to being prompted for AMI's.

In this case the money was well spent and worth every penny. That being said, obviously, such a consultant is only needed in very specialized and specific circumstances - I think Dr. Merchant would concur.

Where do you get information on Dr Merchant? I've seen his name quite a few times on here.
You can go to their website and click on contact us. Just search DODMERB Consultants and it should pop up.
 
Try calling Dr. Merchant's cell. I know he is a practicing physician so the evenings and Fridays seemed to work best.

I too am utilizing Dr. Merchant and I am concerned because he normally responds to my email quite timely, but I haven't heard from him in weeks and when I call his cell number all I get is a busy signal. I'm actually concerned that he is ok. Has anyone heard from him lately?
 
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