DPT vs. PM&R

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med88

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I had not heard of the PM&R med specialty before reading this forum. I am very interested in Physical Therapy but have been trying to decide between MD/BSN/DPT for a while now.

I don't quite understand what a doctor of PM&R does. Will someone please explain that to me?
Here are some of the questions I have:
1. What is the role of the PM&R doctor?
2. How do the PT and the PM&R physician interact in the care plan and in the process of providing care?
3. How competitive is the PM&R specialty?
4. Is the PM&R specialty a "lifestyle" specialty?
5. Is PM&R a new specialty?
6. Do the PM&R doctors get much patient contact?
7. Is there a lot of blood involved in the PM&R specialty?
8. Any other information you would like to add would be wonderful!

THANK YOU!

also, what would be the benefit or what are the pros and cons of each profession?
 
I'll give a more thorough answer later, but here's the moral of the story regarding PM&R physicians vs. PT's:

The similarities begin and end with the goal of restoring function in patients.
 
med88 said:
I had not heard of the PM&R med specialty before reading this forum. I am very interested in Physical Therapy but have been trying to decide between MD/BSN/DPT for a while now.

I don't quite understand what a doctor of PM&R does. Will someone please explain that to me?
Here are some of the questions I have:
1. What is the role of the PM&R doctor?
2. How do the PT and the PM&R physician interact in the care plan and in the process of providing care?
3. How competitive is the PM&R specialty?
4. Is the PM&R specialty a "lifestyle" specialty?
5. Is PM&R a new specialty?
6. Do the PM&R doctors get much patient contact?
7. Is there a lot of blood involved in the PM&R specialty?
8. Any other information you would like to add would be wonderful!

THANK YOU!

also, what would be the benefit or what are the pros and cons of each profession?
Click to expand...

Beyond wht the FAQ sticky may say, some short answers -

1 - assess and treat muscluloskeletal and disabliing conditions - using medication, PT/OT/SP/etc, injections and similar
2 - We write orders for PT, the PT does the therapy hands-on
3 - Not very
4 - Our lifetsyle is more forgiving of homelife than many others
5 - Started around WWII
6 - 100% of the time, all patient contact, all day
7 - just a spot here and there from injections or EMG
8 - find a local PM&R and shadow him/her for a day to see what we do.
 
PMR 4 MSK said:
How competitive is the PM&R specialty? Not very
Click to expand...
The field has gotten significantly more competitive in the years since PMR 4 MSK was an applicant.
 
lobelsteve said:
And clearly it has gotten more competitieve since you were an applicant.

And I got it by the skin of my teeth, I was almost a gas man.
Click to expand...
I meant no disrespect to PMR 4 MSK, merely that his perspective was out of date. I apologize if anyone other than Steve took that to demean PMR 4 MSK - it was not my intension
 
Your first question you should ask yourself is if you want to be a doctor.
4 years of intensive college work, and 4 years of medical school, and then you have to pick if you want to do PM&R (or the multitude of other specialties) and plan on 3-8 years working in that before you get a "real" job. PM&R is 4 years training after medical school.
 
EEEEEWWWWWWW, blood? stuff like that grosses me out!!!!!
 
Thank you to those of you who lended your advice and information. I just cannot decide what I most want to do. I will have to take at least a year off after college to do either of them because I am in my later years of undergraduate and have not yet begun the prerequisites. The prereqs are similar for MD and DPT programs, so I will just begin them next semester and do some observing/shadowing and volunteering in a setting with both in order to determine which one I would like to do.

SSDoc33--I'm not sure whether you were mocking me or attempting to be funny. If you are mocking me, it was a pretty lame attempt. If you were not, I apologize for bringing this up. I was simply wondering if there was a lot of blood involved in specialty. I hate pain and I would find this field very rewarding because I would be reducing people's pain. I do not want to go into an invasive specialty if I pursue medicine because I am not as comfortable with that as some medical students are. Yes, I am sure that I will become accustomed to being around blood in my clinical years of med school and eventually be numb to any emotions that it brings now (I cringe when I watch House--please don't respond by telling me that real medicine is not like tv...I am very aware of this), but I would be very happy to enter a specialty in which I would be relieving pain rather than causing it, though I know that no specialty causes pain without reason. I have a huge interest in the rehab part of a patient's treatment. For these reasons, I think that PM&R OR DPT could be a good fit for me.
 
ok, ok. i was actually mocking you AND attempting to be funny. i thought it was witty. i guess my point was that if you are a littly queasy around blood (or vomit, feces, bile, urine, pus, or any combo of these) then thats something to consider before entering the field of medicine. whatever field of medicine you choose to do, plan on being exposed to a lot of all of the above.

anyway, PM&R is a clinical specialty. you deal with patients all day long. i dont know if there are any physiatrists out there who dont use needles on their patients for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes (in fact, it is a requirement in our training).
 
Llenroc said:
I'm applying right now, and overall it's still one of the least competitive specialties.
Click to expand...
Might want to hold off on disparaging the competitiveness of the field until after you get that spot, IMHO, particularly given that decision makes at a number of programs actually pay attention to this board.
 
Llenroc said:
I'm applying right now, and overall it's still one of the least competitive specialties.
Click to expand...
Absolutely be careful in what you say. It is premature to make the assumption since you are in the application process. Many program directors and attendings check out this forum often. It would not be terribly difficult for a PD to figure out who you might be. Interestingly enough, you have a cool username. Llenroc spelled in reverse is also my alma mater for undergrad.
 
med88 said:
Thank you to those of you who lended your advice and information. I just cannot decide what I most want to do. I will have to take at least a year off after college to do either of them because I am in my later years of undergraduate and have not yet begun the prerequisites. The prereqs are similar for MD and DPT programs, so I will just begin them next semester and do some observing/shadowing and volunteering in a setting with both in order to determine which one I would like to do.

SSDoc33--I'm not sure whether you were mocking me or attempting to be funny. If you are mocking me, it was a pretty lame attempt. If you were not, I apologize for bringing this up. I was simply wondering if there was a lot of blood involved in specialty. I hate pain and I would find this field very rewarding because I would be reducing people's pain. I do not want to go into an invasive specialty if I pursue medicine because I am not as comfortable with that as some medical students are. Yes, I am sure that I will become accustomed to being around blood in my clinical years of med school and eventually be numb to any emotions that it brings now (I cringe when I watch House--please don't respond by telling me that real medicine is not like tv...I am very aware of this), but I would be very happy to enter a specialty in which I would be relieving pain rather than causing it, though I know that no specialty causes pain without reason. I have a huge interest in the rehab part of a patient's treatment. For these reasons, I think that PM&R OR DPT could be a good fit for me.
Click to expand...

Even if you dont want to work with blood you will see some in 3rd and 4th year med school and probably intern year too. Not horror movie levels but some of the surgery rotations(that everyone has to do) you will be seeing blood. I almost passed out the first time I saw an epidural on a pregnant lady, now it doesnt really affect me(Im a third year)
 
agdoc04 said:
Your first question you should ask yourself is if you want to be a doctor.
4 years of intensive college work, and 4 years of medical school, and then you have to pick if you want to do PM&R (or the multitude of other specialties) and plan on 3-8 years working in that before you get a "real" job. PM&R is 4 years training after medical school.
Click to expand...

I completely agree with this. Med school is very intense and the decision to attend is life-changing.
 
Also, why a DPT as opposed to an MPT?
 
drvlad2004 said:
... Interestingly enough, you have a cool username. Llenroc spelled in reverse is also my alma mater for undergrad.
Click to expand...

lol, i had to type it out to see what you meant.
 
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