Fed up with people's assumptions about DOs.

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blahwhatever

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I've gotten anything from "they're chiropractors" to "the difference between MDs and DOs is DOs train for less years".

I just got an interview from NYCOM, I haven't been able to properly enjoy it because of this.

I'm just REALLY REALLY fed up. I just feel like I'm sitting here hoping for a MD interview, just because of OTHER people. Not even because I see a difference. It'll just make my life much easier in terms of what I have to hear about DOs.

To other people who are sensitive to this type of thing, how do all of you deal with it?
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My parents never heard of anything called a DO. When I told them about DO, they were unsure, I got alot of information for them to read, they were still unsure. I made my advisor, who was an MD tell them that it is the "same thing" .

As far as I know, there hasn't been any discrimination against DOs in the medical profession. The only discrimination seen is in the eyes of ignorant premeds and unsure parents.
 
I agree. People are extremely annoying. The "chiropractors with a prescription pad" line really gets me angry.
 
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Just understand that you know what you're talking about and they don't. If it's MDs or MD students that get to you, take comfort in knowing that its just because you're threatening to them and they are only insulting you to bolster their sense of self-worth. When it really comes down to it, you have every right that they do plus you learn extra modalities and have better palpatory skills. Honest. And if it's family/friends, tell them to STFU bc in 4 years you'll be a practicing physician.. can they say that?

Have confidence... the osteopathic medical profession is alive and well. In the infamous words of Martin Lawrence in Nothing to Lose (1997):

"I'm fit, lit, and I damn sure ain't takin' no ****. So you can get the f*ck out."

blahwhatever said:
I've gotten anything from "they're chiropractors" to "the difference between MDs and DOs is DOs train for less years".

I just got an interview from NYCOM, I haven't been able to properly enjoy it because of this.

I'm just REALLY REALLY fed up. I just feel like I'm sitting here hoping for a MD interview, just because of OTHER people. Not even because I see a difference. It'll just make my life much easier in terms of what I have to hear about DOs.

To other people who are sensitive to this type of thing, how do all of you deal with it?
Click to expand...
 
I offer them an herbal blend to stimulate the positive energies of the mind, and I ask them to spend the afternoon meditating on the subject.
 
I'm lucky, I guess, in that I haven't really come across this problem yet. When asked "what is DO?," I explain that MD and DO degrees are essentially the same in that they lead to becomnig a physician who then can practice in any specialty imaginable -- that is usually explanation enough to appease my family and friends.

I'm a pretty private person though so I haven't said much to other people I encounter about my plans for medical school (or really anything about my personal life). Maybe if I was more vocal, I'd get a different response from the "general public." But, Maximus is right -- as long as you know the difference and know that either can get you to where you want to go, who cares what some strangers think? :) As for your parents, if they still don't get it, they will when you graduate and you're a "doctor." ;) My parents didn't know what a D.O. was either but now that I've been accepted they're both excited to share with anyone who will listen that their daughter is going to medical school next fall. :)
 
Saregamapadanis said:
My parents never heard of anything called a DO. When I told them about DO, they were unsure, I got alot of information for them to read, they were still unsure. I made my advisor, who was an MD tell them that it is the "same thing" .
Click to expand...

I had a similar situation. My Dad was very unsure and kept asking me the SAME questions over and over (Aren't they like Chiropractors? Do you get to write prescriptions? So will you make any money?). Which means he was NOT listening to me. It really pissed me off to have to defend my decision all the time. At a get together with my parents and their friends, there was a MD there that my Dad has known for a long time and is someone he really respects. My decision to go to a DO school came up and the MD went on this long rant about how DOs and MDs are the same and it only matters what your patients think of you because they make or break your practice. No more questions from my Dad after that!! I guess he needed to hear it from someone other than myself.

After my Dad was cool with it, I don't let other people's misconceptions bother me. I care what he thinks and that is about it. I always try to educate my friends on it because they are genuinely interested in my plans but otherwise I try to let it roll off my back.
 
Yes, and also try to remember that your parents are just giving you a "hard time" about it because they love you (unlike strangers/premeds/etc. who might be just rude or jerks), so try to be patient with them until they understand. :) They just want what's best for you.
 
if my parents ask, i just tell them I'm going to be a doctor. If they don't understand, I bang on the table and say they don't understand and they don't understand me?!
 
Yes and they want to make sure they can mooch off of you when they get older. :laugh: My Dad keeps making not-so-subtle jokes about a beach house.

I don't have the heart to tell him that it won't happen .................................................because I won't let him in.
 
IUgrad said:
Yes, and also try to remember that your parents are just giving you a "hard time" about it because they love you (unlike strangers/premeds/etc. who might be just rude or jerks), so try to be patient with them until they understand. :) They just want what's best for you.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. :thumbup:

Patience is something of a gift for us who are going into this profession.
 
Doc11Hopeful said:
I guess he needed to hear it from someone other than myself.
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Yes, I realized that, usually they think you are biased because you want to go into the profession. So, if they hear it something positive from an MD, then they start believing it.
 
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Is that a move from Donkey Kong?
 
blahwhatever said:
I've gotten anything from "they're chiropractors" to "the difference between MDs and DOs is DOs train for less years".

I just got an interview from NYCOM, I haven't been able to properly enjoy it because of this.

I'm just REALLY REALLY fed up. I just feel like I'm sitting here hoping for a MD interview, just because of OTHER people. Not even because I see a difference. It'll just make my life much easier in terms of what I have to hear about DOs.

To other people who are sensitive to this type of thing, how do all of you deal with it?
Click to expand...

(1) take all the steps of the USMLE
(2) go to an ACGME (not a dual accredited and not an AOA) residency
(3) don't practice OMM
(4) get board certified by the MD subspeciality organization of your choice

Act like an MD, and you'll be regarded as an MD. Run around telling people that you can cure their headaches by adjusting their cranial bones and you'll be regarded as a quack.
 
Old_Mil said:
(1) take all the steps of the USMLE
(2) go to an ACGME (not a dual accredited and not an AOA) residency
(3) don't practice OMM
(4) get board certified by the MD subspeciality organization of your choice

Act like an MD, and you'll be regarded as an MD. Run around telling people that you can cure their headaches by adjusting their cranial bones and you'll be regarded as a quack.
Click to expand...

Old_Mil, I like your style, lets be friends!

I was already planning to do 2-4, but I see your #1 there and am a little curious why it is important to take all 3 steps. Is it just so you can say you've done them, or is there an actual benefit to taking all 3 USMLE steps (as opposed to just step 1)?
 
If you are at a dual accredited residency are you accredited in both ACGME and AOA?
 
(1) take all the steps of the USMLE
(2) go to an ACGME (not a dual accredited and not an AOA) residency
(3) don't practice OMM
(4) get board certified by the MD subspeciality organization of your choice
Click to expand...

This seems harsh. Old Mil are you a DO?

Do you really think AOA residencies are much inferior?
Do you think OMM has no benefits at all?

thanks
 
sexyman said:
This seems harsh. Old Mil are you a DO?

Do you really think AOA residencies are much inferior?
Do you think OMM has no benefits at all?

thanks
Click to expand...


Oh yeah, he is a DO student

Just take a look at his history and you will see he has always had *these* issues with being a DO, right OLD_MIL? :love:
 
Texas, congrats on being accepted to PCOM :clap:
 
IUgrad said:
Is that a move from Donkey Kong?
Click to expand...

It's something you learn in OMM class. Actually Donkey Punch is a fundamental difference between M.D and D.O ;). If the general public and our loved ones will still keep asking us "What's a D.O" I sugguest that we give them a "crash" course, especially on the "Donkey Punch" technique :smuggrin:
 
blahwhatever said:
I've gotten anything from "they're chiropractors" to "the difference between MDs and DOs is DOs train for less years".

I just got an interview from NYCOM, I haven't been able to properly enjoy it because of this.

I'm just REALLY REALLY fed up. I just feel like I'm sitting here hoping for a MD interview, just because of OTHER people. Not even because I see a difference. It'll just make my life much easier in terms of what I have to hear about DOs.
Click to expand...

Stop reading SDN and talking to pre-meds, it'll all go away for the most past.
 
Old_Mil said:
(1) take all the steps of the USMLE
(2) go to an ACGME (not a dual accredited and not an AOA) residency
(3) don't practice OMM
(4) get board certified by the MD subspeciality organization of your choice

Act like an MD, and you'll be regarded as an MD. Run around telling people that you can cure their headaches by adjusting their cranial bones and you'll be regarded as a quack.
Click to expand...

You're an ass. That is all.

bc most DOs really believe in cranial...really.
 
It happens and will continue to happen, just can't let it bother you so much.

Was helping out at a local health fair this weekend and had to describe to a few people what a DO was. One guy was even a lawyer and asked if we could specialize in things other than bones......
 
That's what I thought when I saw the osteopathic diploma hanging on a psychiatrist's wall. And I was pre-med at the time, in a state with one of the most prestigious DO schools in the country, and DO's practicing everywhere. I had still never heard of it.
 
it really doesn't matter what people think about you (MD or DO)...the MOST important thing should be to obtain a "good" medical education, once you get that and you work hard through our your residency years, people WILL respect you if your a good doctor (MD or DO)
 
The biggest thing to remember is that this is a huge pre-med tornado, that is spun basically by 19 year old kids who know nothing about the profession whatsoever, and base assumptions of success on what MD schools have the highest MCAT/Gpa averages. They will tell you that DOs aren't real doctors ... or start annoying threads that say 'I personally think DOs are great ... but the general public does not respect these witch doctors, why is this, ' which is a ploy so thinly veiled it's laughable. The bottom line is that ... pre-med students are the farthest thing from reality physically possible. The real world has no freaking clue what a DO is, what the term 'allopathic' and 'osteopathic' mean, or even what the MCAT is for that manner.

So when people say that no one is going to see you as a DO because they have SLIGHTLY (this will continue to lessen in the next 5 years btw) MCAT/gpa averages, this is hilarious. It is just pre-meds, period. In the real world people most likely won't even know you are a DO (not that there is anything to hide) and if they question it, a 15 second conversation finishes that problem. People are going to see you because you are good doctor, or because you have worked hard to run a successful practice, not because of the letters behind your name. There is no one in the world who will go see a bad MD over a good DO (in the same field) because one was an MD and one was a DO ... this just isn't reality. People want a doctor they feel comfortable with/and can trust. If you work hard, and do the best you can to be a good physician ... you will be successful.

As far as like parents or peers asking you about it ... who cares. If you truly want to be a DO, take the opportunity to enlighten someone on what osteopathic medicine is. My parents asked, I explained to them ... and now they couldn't be happier. You are going to be a doctor, don't sweat small stuff like this ... medicine isn't all about little competition and nit picky details.
 
blahwhatever said:
I've gotten anything from "they're chiropractors" to "the difference between MDs and DOs is DOs train for less years".

I just got an interview from NYCOM, I haven't been able to properly enjoy it because of this.

I'm just REALLY REALLY fed up. I just feel like I'm sitting here hoping for a MD interview, just because of OTHER people. Not even because I see a difference. It'll just make my life much easier in terms of what I have to hear about DOs.

To other people who are sensitive to this type of thing, how do all of you deal with it?
Click to expand...

I always go with that always succesful:

"You can call me whatever you want, or say I train for less number of years, but whatever the truth maybe, I am a legal physician by law, and I make physician money as well;). I could careless if I went to only 1 month of school, but apparently I am trusted enough to have peoples life in my hand...:laugh:"
 
1. Keep it short and simple, remember the shot attention spans people "Theres no practical diffrence, and further more since your not paying for it, your suggestions don't count. Cut me a check, and I'll pay attention."

But seriously, its whatever you make it.:)

My mother is a top NP getting Doctoral at a very big hospital in New York, and a couple of days ago, the changed admin. paperwork to include DO/MD, and more D.O's on paper. Even though many D.O's work there, they were always checking MD, but now they have the right option avail. With this maybe the questions of "whats that?" will stop.



blahwhatever said:
I've gotten anything from "they're chiropractors" to "the difference between MDs and DOs is DOs train for less years".



I just got an interview from NYCOM, I haven't been able to properly enjoy it because of this.

I'm just REALLY REALLY fed up. I just feel like I'm sitting here hoping for a MD interview, just because of OTHER people. Not even because I see a difference. It'll just make my life much easier in terms of what I have to hear about DOs.

To other people who are sensitive to this type of thing, how do all of you deal with it?
Click to expand...
 
Old_Mil said:
(1) take all the steps of the USMLE
(2) go to an ACGME (not a dual accredited and not an AOA) residency
(3) don't practice OMM
(4) get board certified by the MD subspeciality organization of your choice

Act like an MD, and you'll be regarded as an MD. Run around telling people that you can cure their headaches by adjusting their cranial bones and you'll be regarded as a quack.
Click to expand...

Then why go to DO school in the first place?

Oh, right...that darn MCAT. Shucks. Never mind.
 
Guess not...It was a noble effort, though, megboo! :)
 
Saregamapadanis said:
My parents never heard of anything called a DO. When I told them about DO, they were unsure
Click to expand...

My grandmother is 92 and she too is squeemish about D.O.s.

She has no reason or explanation. Just stubborn.
 
My grandpa (who as an older person you think would be more inclined to be clueless/prejudiced about D.O.s than the general public) told me tonight when we all went to dinner that neither he nor any of us kids would not be here if not for an "ostepath" (his terminology). Apparently, he had a spinal injury when he was born that was not diagnosed properly, and all of the doctors his parents brought him to said that they could not fix it and told them that he would live a short life. It was an osteopathic physician that finally corrected it, and he lived a normal life -- he is currently 82 and very healthy. I thought it was a pretty cool story that I never heard before. :thumbup:
 
Wow, that's a really cool story. It seriously brought tears to my eyes.:thumbup:
 
Yourmother said:
My grandmother is 92 and she too is squeemish about D.O.s.

She has no reason or explanation. Just stubborn.
Click to expand...

haha, when my dad visited my grandmother and told her I got into medical school in florida(NSU) she was like, "Miami?" and my dad responsed, "well, no but its a medical school." and she responded, "why doesnt he apply to Johns Hopkins?" all i could do was laugh.
 
Basically, just knowing that i am going to be a doctor is all the reassurrance i need.
 
Who cares.....Just be a good doctor and find a way you feel is the best way to explain it.
 
IUgrad said:
My grandpa (who as an older person you think would be more inclined to be clueless/prejudiced about D.O.s than the general public) told me tonight when we all went to dinner that neither he nor any of us kids would not be here if not for an "ostepath" (his terminology). Apparently, he had a spinal injury when he was born that was not diagnosed properly, and all of the doctors his parents brought him to said that they could not fix it and told them that he would live a short life. It was an osteopathic physician that finally corrected it, and he lived a normal life -- he is currently 82 and very healthy. I thought it was a pretty cool story that I never heard before. :thumbup:
Click to expand...

You should mention that in your interviews
 
maybe having the option of choosing DO or MD-OMM will shut everyone up.
 
medhacker said:
You should mention that in your interviews
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's too bad I didn't know about that sooner because that would have been a great interview story. But, I think I'm done interviewing now -- I got into my top two choices (for family reasons). :D
 
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