DO shadowing

[Muscles00GT]

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I apologize if this has been asked before. I tried searching, but couldn't find an answer to my question. How long does an individual usually shadow for? I spoke with my family physician about a week ago and he said we could work something out to where I could shadow him for a week or two. I was hoping I could do it the duration of the summer, so just wondering if a week or two is the average time an individual shadows? thanks

 

[dr.kicia]

I apologize if this has been asked before. I tried searching, but couldn't find an answer to my question. How long does an individual usually shadow for? I spoke with my family physician about a week ago and he said we could work something out to where I could shadow him for a week or two. I was hoping I could do it the duration of the summer, so just wondering if a week or two is the average time an individual shadows? thanks

general rule is as long as you need your DO to get to know you well enough to write you a good LOR...and so you get an idea about the osteopathic type of practice.
Some ppl will shadow for one day or not at all(you can still get a LOR with only a conversation with a DO) others will do it for months.
I say if you have a lot of exposure to medical field then shadowing for months is not needed.

 

[GreenShirt]

I apologize if this has been asked before. I tried searching, but couldn't find an answer to my question. How long does an individual usually shadow for? I spoke with my family physician about a week ago and he said we could work something out to where I could shadow him for a week or two. I was hoping I could do it the duration of the summer, so just wondering if a week or two is the average time an individual shadows? thanks

There's no average. I shadowed a DO for half a day to get my recommendation. There's three things you might want to get out of shadowing: 1) Clinical experience 2) Learn more about DO's 3) Establish a relationship to form a basis for an LOR. If you don't have enough/any clinical experience at this point, then you might want to shadow a physician for a longer period of time. However, it will most likely be too cumbersome for a physician to have you around everyday for a whole summer. If he's offering you a week or two, that's pretty generous. That should be plenty of time to learn about the profession from him. Plus, you'll get tired of shadowing, which involves a lot of standing in the corner and feeling like you're getting in the way, fairly quickly. He already knows a lot about you as a patient, so he should have a basis for writing an LOR.

 

[dr.kicia]

There's no average. I shadowed a DO for half a day to get my recommendation. There's three things you might want to get out of shadowing: 1) Clinical experience 2) Learn more about DO's 3) Establish a relationship to form a basis for an LOR. If you don't have enough/any clinical experience at this point, then you might want to shadow a physician for a longer period of time. However, it will most likely be too cumbersome for a physician to have you around everyday for a whole summer. If he's offering you a week or two, that's pretty generous. That should be plenty of time to learn about the profession from him. Plus, you'll get tired of shadowing, which involves a lot of standing in the corner and feeling like you're getting in the way, fairly quickly. He already knows a lot about you as a patient, so he should have a basis for writing an LOR.

LOL...yeah it gets really bad when you are being recognized by 75% of the patients who come back for their 6 month follow up.
I really love my DO though so i have been a pain in the a$$ for him since last summer.
I shadow him every other week though.
I do agree that DO letting you shadow him/her for a week or two is very generous so take advantage of it.

 

[Muscles00GT]

Thanks guys. My goal is to just gain some experience in the field. I also might shadow an MD in order to compare the two. I also want to gain some sort of relationship with my DO hoping he will feel comfortable writing a LOR for me in the future. 😎

 

[boodthedog]

It's a good idea to remember that in most cases volunteering looks better than shadowing. So, while it's a good idea to do both, I'd spend the months volunteering and the week or two of shadowing sounds perfect.

 

[Muscles00GT]

It's a good idea to remember that in most cases volunteering looks better than shadowing. So, while it's a good idea to do both, I'd spend the months volunteering and the week or two of shadowing sounds perfect.

Yea, I applied for a pre-med program (volunteer) that a local hospital is doing over the summer. They only accept 12 people, so i'm hoping I get in. If not, I'll definitely volunteer elsewhere.

 

[dr.kicia]

Thanks guys. My goal is to just gain some experience in the field. I also might shadow an MD in order to compare the two. I also want to gain some sort of relationship with my DO hoping he will feel comfortable writing a LOR for me in the future. 😎

it is really awsome if you shadow an MD as well. I did and have a descent comparison. Though it may always be some personality issues you will also see some differences in practice.
I'd definetly keep in touch with your DO. Invite him/her to lunch, talk on more personal level. You will notice that during shadowing there is very little time to ask questions or have a normal conversation. It's called shadowing for a reason
Well, you have 90% of the job done-> you found a DO to shadow. Sometimes it takes months to do so you are definetly on the right truck!
And if you will have any other questions just ask🙂

 

[GreenShirt]

It's a good idea to remember that in most cases volunteering looks better than shadowing. So, while it's a good idea to do both, I'd spend the months volunteering and the week or two of shadowing sounds perfect.

You'll get more of a chance to ask specific questions of a physician through shadowing. When you volunteer, you usually get pawned off on a CNA or Tech, who has to come up with things for you to do and you tend to get less access to the doctors. Although, that's just my experience. I'm sure you can get useful information from both shadowing and volunteering. One of the best things to do, if you have the time, is to get an EMT or CNA certificate and actually work in the healthcare setting (IMO).

 

[dr.kicia]

It's a good idea to remember that in most cases volunteering looks better than shadowing. So, while it's a good idea to do both, I'd spend the months volunteering and the week or two of shadowing sounds perfect.

while volunteering can be awsome it can also suck really badly. But you just need to find the right thing for you. I was a volunteer at the ER for one semester and it was literarly pointless (i was soooo bored that when someone asked me to bring the blood samples to the lab i got extatic). I hated it😡 . But then for this semester i moved to peds and i LOVE it so much!!!😀
You do not neccesarily need volunteering to get into med school. There is plenty of ppl who had other type of medical expousure and got in with no problems.

 

[122206DO]

I think it's important to understand that you should see the DO letter as another opportunity to show your determination and passion for wanting to be a doctor. If you view it as just another requirement you gotta fill, you will most likely get a fairly generic letter. I still think it's best to find a clinical faculty for a letter unless you think your family doc is going to write you an outstanding one. Good luck!

 

[Muscles00GT]

it is really awsome if you shadow an MD as well. I did and have a descent comparison. Though it may always be some personality issues you will also see some differences in practice.
I'd definetly keep in touch with your DO. Invite him/her to lunch, talk on more personal level. You will notice that during shadowing there is very little time to ask questions or have a normal conversation. It's called shadowing for a reason
Well, you have 90% of the job done-> you found a DO to shadow. Sometimes it takes months to do so you are definetly on the right truck!
And if you will have any other questions just ask🙂

Thanks for the advice. I'm doing my best to get as much experience as I can. I did a search for DO's in my area at home and 90% of them went to PCOM (the school i want to go to), so that's a plus.

 

[scdocusc]

It really helps to have volunteering in the medical field for at least a few hours a month. Upon my rejection I was told that I needed to do more volunteering in a free medical clinic. I was a little mad at that because I had worked in a hospital for 2 years as a phlebotomist. Just cover all your bases so you dont get burned by something as stupid as volunteering

 

[the prodogy]

Is it necessary to shadow a DO. I was planning on shadowing an MD because I already know him to a certain degree.

 

[GreenShirt]

Is it necessary to shadow a DO. I was planning on shadowing an MD because I already know him to a certain degree.

For many DO schools a DO LOR is mandatory, but not all. Check each school's website for details. You'll be able to apply to more DO schools with one.

 

[dr.kicia]

Is it necessary to shadow a DO. I was planning on shadowing an MD because I already know him to a certain degree.

most of the schools "prefare" DO LORs while others "require" them. I i think it is a good idea to shadow DO if you want to make it to DO school.

 

[scdocusc]

I would suggest that you shadow both an MD and DO. And get both to write you letters. The more the better. Try as hard as you can to shadow a DO as this will give you a lot more perspective on osteopathic medicine.

 

[Muscles00GT]

I would suggest that you shadow both an MD and DO. And get both to write you letters. The more the better. Try as hard as you can to shadow a DO as this will give you a lot more perspective on osteopathic medicine.

Yeah, well i'm shadowing at least one DO this summer. I'll try to fit in an MD as well in addition to some volunteering if possible. If not, i'm not worried about it. I'm only in my 4th semester so I still have a lot of time to get my volunteer work in.