conversation i had w/ my doc

[crys20]

---

Members do not see this ad.

So not too long ago I was talking with my family doc (an md), talking about how I'll be applying this summer and what not and I mentioned I was going to apply to D.O. schools. His reply was "why, you don't have to." (i wouldn't say that...my "stats" are pretty avg) I went on to ask him if he thought there was any disadvantage or whatever to the D.O. route and he explained to me that you have to compete with md's for allo residencies (which obviously i knew) and md's tend to have the advantage there. Then he said that the alternative to that is doing the osteopathic internship year and he said that many people in those programs are "poorly trained". I was just wondering if anyone had any input on that...how osteo residencies work and do the osteo internships really provide not the greatest training?

 

[stoic]

So not too long ago I was talking with my family doc (an md), talking about how I'll be applying this summer and what not and I mentioned I was going to apply to D.O. schools. His reply was "why, you don't have to." (i wouldn't say that...my "stats" are pretty avg) I went on to ask him if he thought there was any disadvantage or whatever to the D.O. route and he explained to me that you have to compete with md's for allo residencies (which obviously i knew) and md's tend to have the advantage there. Then he said that the alternative to that is doing the osteopathic internship year and he said that many people in those programs are "poorly trained". I was just wondering if anyone had any input on that...how osteo residencies work and do the osteo internships really provide not the greatest training?

Unfortuantely DO post graduate training is generally not up to par with MD programs. DO programs are genearlly housed in community hospitals with unsatisfactory volume and pathology. There are good DO programs out there, but you really need to do your research to find them. Noteably there has been a shift towards dually accredited programs that are train both MD's and DO's (different from MD programs that traing both). These programs are very likely the wave of the future.

DO postgraduate training is a hot topic these days. More and more DO schools are opening up and more and more DO programs are closing their doors. The ones that remain are often undesireable to graduates. I wouldn't let this disuade you from going to a DO school, but as some of the DO's on this board will tell you, bust your ass to nail a MD residency spot.

Good luck,
S

 

[medic170]

So not too long ago I was talking with my family doc (an md), talking about how I'll be applying this summer and what not and I mentioned I was going to apply to D.O. schools. His reply was "why, you don't have to." (i wouldn't say that...my "stats" are pretty avg) I went on to ask him if he thought there was any disadvantage or whatever to the D.O. route and he explained to me that you have to compete with md's for allo residencies (which obviously i knew) and md's tend to have the advantage there. Then he said that the alternative to that is doing the osteopathic internship year and he said that many people in those programs are "poorly trained". I was just wondering if anyone had any input on that...how osteo residencies work and do the osteo internships really provide not the greatest training?

You only have to have that internship year if you plan to practice in one of the magic 5 states, and most residency programs, allo and AOA, have it integrated so you do not have to do an extra year.

As far as quality of training, that totally depends on the program. There are excellent and crappy programs that are allopathic, and the same goes for AOA.

Sounds like you family doc is an old school DO hater 🙄

 

[medic170]

but as some of the DO's on this board will tell you, bust your ass to nail a MD residency spot.

Good luck,
S

If you want a good DO residency, check out the AOA and dually accredited programs in Michigan, we have some of the best (from what I have been told) as far as AOA residencies go.

 

[stoic]

If you want a good DO residency, check out the AOA and dually accredited programs in Michigan, we have some of the best (from what I have been told) as far as AOA residencies go.

Most definatly. There are definately a good number of high quality DO programs out there. The dually accredited programs, IMHO, are definately the future. Unfortunatly there are some really bad DO programs out there, too. For example there are several DO community EM programs that see less than 25k patients a year. That's nothing. My hometown ED sees 25k a year and I can tell you right now that you just don't see enough pathology to get a broad training when you're seeing 25k patients a year that have the accutity of your average community ED patient. We're talking mostly colds and old people and not much else.

That said I think if you talked to some of the residents who have been displaced by DO programs that have recently shut down (and there have been quite a few in the past couple of years) they'd definately tell you to really do your research before going into a DO residency.

 

[medic170]

That said I think if you talked to some of the residents who have been displaced by DO programs that have recently shut down (and there have been quite a few in the past couple of years) they'd definately tell you to really do your research before going into a DO residency.

Great advice, as long as you research the quality of the program, you will be fine either way(AOA or Allo), and I agree that dual accreditation is a great thing.

 

[crys20]

Thanks guys!! 🙂

bust your ass to nail a MD residency spot.

I really think that for me the ONLY thing that would make me pick MD over DO if i had a choice is this....I worked my ass off in undergrad just to really be sort of an average applicant numbers-wise. I'm just not a genius 🙂 How much better do DO's have to be to compete with MDs?

 

[medic170]

Thanks guys!! 🙂



I really think that for me the ONLY thing that would make me pick MD over DO if i had a choice is this....I worked my ass off in undergrad just to really be sort of an average applicant numbers-wise. I'm just not a genius 🙂 How much better do DO's have to be to compete with MDs?

You confused me, what are you saying? 😕

 

[Kevbot]

I really think that for me the ONLY thing that would make me pick MD over DO if i had a choice is this....I worked my ass off in undergrad just to really be sort of an average applicant numbers-wise. I'm just not a genius 🙂 How much better do DO's have to be to compete with MDs?

She is saying that she is worried that if she is having trouble competing against future allo pre-meds, then the chances of her competing with the those same people for residency are slim.
I think it is a good point. Many of the people we will be competing with for MD residencies have been scoring better on standardized tests like the MCAT. Which means that there will be stiff competition during the USMLE. On top of that, we may be discriminated against for being DO's. That's a heavy monkey to have on our backs. 😀

 

[cooldreams]

She is saying that she is worried that if she is having trouble competing against future allo pre-meds, then the chances of her competing with the those same people for residency are slim.
I think it is a good point. Many of the people we will be competing with for MD residencies have been scoring better on standardized tests like the MCAT. Which means that there will be stiff competition during the USMLE. On top of that, we may be discriminated against for being DO's. That's a heavy monkey to have on our backs. 😀

well isnt that the same difference as being an md student and not able to do well on standardized tests?? i thought for the most part, the programs have cut offs and you are above that cutoff then they give you an interview to the residency program. maybe the cut off is a little higher for DOs in a few programs, but the interview is a large part right??? guess im mistaken or somemting.... 😕

 

[JonnyG]

Hard work is only pat of the equation. The rest is who you know. If you establish connections during your rotations, you will behelped considerably during your search for residencies. I know several doctors who told me to keep in touch, so that if i want to enter their field they will help me with finding and getting into a good program. (even if i become a DO)

 

[medic170]

Hard work is only pat of the equation. The rest is who you know. If you establish connections during your rotations, you will behelped considerably during your search for residencies. I know several doctors who told me to keep in touch, so that if i want to enter their field they will help me with finding and getting into a good program. (even if i become a DO)

All the docs I know have said that who you network with in your rotations means a ton more than what your scores are or which letters you have after your name 👍

 

[fuzzwinkle11]

Just to throw this in there, but my roommate is an M3 at VCU/MCV (allopathic) and says that alot of the attendings leading him on his rotations are DO's....so no DO GME is actually far better than MD and it can be clearly seen in how fast DO's progress to attending.....its just misunderstood because there are so few DOs compared to MDs.

my $0.02

 

[stoic]

Just to throw this in there, but my roommate is an M3 at VCU/MCV (allopathic) and says that alot of the attendings leading him on his rotations are DO's....so no DO GME is actually far better than MD and it can be clearly seen in how fast DO's progress to attending.....its just misunderstood because there are so few DOs compared to MDs.

my $0.02

There is no difference between how quickly equally qualified MD's or DO's can climb the ladder.

I would also encourage you to find out what percentage of those DO attendings did MD residencies... my hunch is that the percentage would be quite high.